Mr. DODD. Mr. President, a week or so ago, I had the distinct pleasure of traveling with our colleague from the State of Florida, Connie Mack, along with a bipartisan delegation of 16 Members of the House of Representatives, to Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland on the occasion of President Clinton's visit there. It was a historic visit, the first time that a sitting American President visited Northern Ireland.

Allow me to say, first of all, that regardless of one's party, ideology or political persuasion, I think every American, those who were there, those who witnessed on CNN the President's historic visit to Ireland, were moved by the reception that our President received.

On three different occasions, at speeches in Derry, in Belfast, and in Dublin, the estimates of the crowds greeting the President were approximately 250,000 people. That does not include the thousands of people who lined the various roadways to welcome the President to the North of Ireland and to the Republic.

His reception was directly related to his efforts over the past 23 months to try and bring an end to the generational conflict in Northern Ireland. The last 15 of those months have been the first time in more than 25 years that there has been the absence of violence and the threat of violence that has stemmed from what the people in Ireland refer to as the Troubles.

The President deserves enormous credit for setting the stage for that cessation of hostilities. His decision to extend a visa to Gerry Adams, the president of the Sinn Fein Party, early in 1994 was the bold move that ultimately resulted in the decision by the IRA to announce a unilateral cease-fire in the fall of 1994.

For more than 15 months, the peoples of Northern Ireland and Ireland, as well as people in Great Britain, have enjoyed the first period of unprecedented peace in more than a generation.

Still, the issues which are at the root cause of that violence remain to be addressed and resolved, Mr. President. Our former colleague, Senator George Mitchell of Maine, has been asked by the Governments of Great Britain and Ireland and the political parties in Northern Ireland to chair a commission, an international commission, to try and see if the issue of decommissioning of arms and related matters can be resolved as we proceed on a twin track, of commencing all-party talks by the end of February. It is through these twin tracks that the people of Northern Ireland can live in permanent peace, free from violence and discrimination.

The remarkable change in the North is very apparent to all who go there. President Clinton's efforts have made that possible. I would say to my colleagues that there is a deep appreciation on the island of Ireland for that effort. There was a risk involved in it. As my colleague, the Presiding Officer, will recall or remember, that the President received a lot of advice and counsel about the wisdom of extending that first visa to Mr. Adams, given the history of Sinn Fein and the IRA. Some questioned whether or not there was a sincere commitment to seek a peaceful resolution of this conflict. Even after the IRA announced its cease-fire last year some continued to question whether it would hold. I know the President heard a lot of advice, the bulk of it, in fact, recommended against extending that visa.

Our colleagues, Senator Moynihan of New York, Senator Kennedy, and others, urged the President to take the chance, to extend that visa and to test whether there was a true commitment to adopting the political track to resolve differences and whether a cease-fire might work. As a result of that, we have seen, as I described briefly, the events that unfolded over the past year or so.

Again, Mr. President, Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith and her staff, the Government of Prime Minister Bruton, Deputy Prime Minister Dick Spring, and other Irish officials, did a remarkable job, along with Sir Patrick Mayhew and the people of Northern Ireland.

I mentioned earlier Gerry Adams. This is a man who has played a very courageous part in the quest for peace for his country men and women.

There was a tremendous effort over many months that went into making this trip the tremendous success that it turned out to be.

John Hume, of Derry, whom all of us have met at one time or another in the past 20 years, is the individual who really initiated the peace effort in Northern Ireland and in Derry. What a remarkable job he and others have done in Derry to bring the two traditions together, the nationalist and unionist traditions, to try and achieve economic opportunity for people. John Hume and others have worked tirelessly to attract business and promote job growth in that community. It was truly a heartwarming sight to see the American President received by John Hume in the square of Derry, while more than 50,000 people looked on. Some of these people had lined the street since 9 a.m. in the morning, and the President arrived late in the afternoon.

In the Guild Hall the President got a the tremendous reception; when the song `The Town I Love So Well' was sung, the audience was literally moved to tears. That song describes the troubles in Derry over the past two and one half decades.

In Belfast, at the Christmas tree lighting ceremony, 100,000 people gathered in the great square in Belfast--Protestants and Catholics alike--welcoming our President to their city. This is the same city, where a few months ago, you would not have thought of sending an American President because of the violence there, and where people were fearful of that when they walked into a department store or pub that place would be the subject of attack and violence.

What was particularly historic was to see this crowd--again, presenting the great traditions of Northern Ireland--come together to express their appreciation to an American President, the American people, and to the United States Congress; it certainly was one of the great sights I have witnessed in my tenure here in the United States Senate.

And then, Mr. President, the President was warmly received by the Parliament in the Republic of Ireland. The people of Dublin also came out en masse to express their appreciation. With over 100,000 people there as witnesses, President Clinton was awarded the `Freedom of the City' credentials that have only been awarded to a handful of people in Dublin. This was truly a high honor to receive. The President made very compelling remarks during his stay in Dublin.

Certainly, the sight of those children that the President constantly referred to when he talked about the opportunities and the hopes for peace in Northern Ireland--particularly the two children at the Mackie Metal Plant in Belfast--who joined hands, one Catholic, one Protestant--representing by the clasping of hands their hopes for coming together and resolving differences so people can live in peace on the island of Ireland.

As a person of Irish descent, for me it was more than just a foreign visit, but a visit by someone whose family, on both sides, has come from Ireland, going back well into the early part of the last century. I was deeply proud that an American President had taken the actions he has over the last couple of years and that this has made a difference in people's lives.

We have seen this administration take steps in Haiti, now in Bosnia, there in Ireland, and in other places--steps that are certainly full of risks, but nonetheless I think risks worth taking, in the sense that we have been able to make a difference in people's lives.

So it was a deeply moving time for those of us who were part of this trip to have been present at a historic visit by an American President to a foreign land. For all who witnessed the reception he received, I think it makes everyone--regardless of party, ideology, or political persuasion--very proud to be an American.

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