[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 8 (Monday, February 27, 1995)]
[Page 286]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on the Peace Process in Northern Ireland

February 22, 1995

    I welcome today's announcement by Irish Prime Minister Bruton and 
British Prime Minister Major of the launching of a joint framework 
document outlining their shared proposals for inclusive talks on the 
future of Northern Ireland. The publication of this document marks 
another significant step forward in the peace process. I congratulate 
both Prime Ministers, former Irish Prime Minister Albert Reynolds, Irish 
Foreign Minister Dick Spring, and British Secretary of State for 
Northern Ireland Sir Patrick Mayhew, all of whom have worked hard and 
risked much in the search for a new path forward to reconciliation and 
lasting peace.
    The framework document lays the foundation for all-party talks among 
the British and Irish Governments and the political parties in Northern 
Ireland. The talks are intended to be all-inclusive, with all issues on 
the table. As the Irish and British Governments have emphasized, the 
document is designed to assist discussion and negotiation on Northern 
Ireland and will not be imposed on any party. The clear wish of the 
people of Northern Ireland is for a lasting peace. We call upon all the 
parties to examine the document carefully and move forward on the basis 
of it.
    The guns and bombs have been silent in Northern Ireland for almost 6 
months. The benefits of peace are obvious to all, and I urge the parties 
to seize this opportunity. I will continue to strongly support the peace 
process in Northern Ireland and to work with the Governments of Ireland 
and the United Kingdom to build on today's courageous step forward 
toward lasting peace. In addition, I look forward to our Trade and 
Investment Conference to be held this May as a way to underscore the 
tangible benefits to peace.