[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 42 (Monday, October 21, 2002)]
[Pages 1765-1766]
[Online from the Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Northern Ireland

October 14, 2002

    I support the difficult but necessary decision today by British 
Prime Minister Tony Blair to suspend the Northern Ireland Executive and 
Assembly. I welcome the commitment of Prime Minister Blair and Irish 
Prime Minister Bertie Ahern to restore confidence between the parties 
and peoples of Northern Ireland, hold elections, and reinstate 
powersharing as soon as is possible.
    I join their condemnation of sectarianism and violence and echo 
their call for all parties to make unequivocal their commitment to 
exclusively peaceful and democratic means for pursuing their interests. 
There is simply no place for paramilitaries in a democratic society. I 
also applaud the two Governments' recognition of the central importance 
of policing and the need for continued policing reform.

[[Page 1766]]

    I welcome the continued close cooperation of the British and Irish 
Governments as they work toward the full implementation of the Good 
Friday agreement. The United States stands ready to assist their 
efforts. I appeal to everyone in Northern Ireland to recognize the great 
benefits that the agreement has already secured. The Good Friday 
agreement remains the best framework for a lasting peace in Northern 
Ireland.