From the Beltway to Belfast: The Clinton Administration, Sinn Féin, and the Northern Ireland Peace Process

Abstract

Since the early 1970S, United States law enforcement agencies have played an important role in the Northern Ireland conflict. The FBI, in particular, worked closely with British and Irish security forces to counteract transatlantic support for the Provisional Irish Republican Army. This usually involved surveillance of republican support groups and prosecution of Irish American gunrunning networks. In addition, the Immigration and Naturalization Service vigorously pursued Irish Republican Army fugitives in the United States, helping secure a number of high-profile deportations and extraditions, while the State Department enforced a strict policy of visa denial against prominent leaders of Sinn Féin. Taken collectively, these initiatives made it increasingly difficult for the IRA to utilize Irish America as a source for arms procurement, financial support, and publicity. The White House, on the other hand, has generally kept out of Northern Ireland affairs. Involvement rarely went beyond the annual St. Patrick’s Day appeal, initiated by Gerald Ford, for Irish Americans not to support the IRA. It was not until 1977 that Jimmy Carter launched the first presidential initiative on Northern Ireland, promising financial and economic assistance in the event of a political breakthrough. Later, Ronald Reagan, despite refusing to