Three months before the Canary Wharf bomb ended the first ceasefire in February 1996, Bill Clinton became the first serving President of the United States to visit Northern Ireland.

Calling it the most remarkable day of his life, he visited Belfast and Londonderry where he offered his strong support to the peace process and warned those who advocated violence that their day was over.

Among the first to welcome the president to Belfast was nine-year-old catholic, Catherine Hamill.

Catherine Hamill: "My Christmas wish is that peace and love will last in Ireland for ever."

"My first daddy died in the troubles," she said. "It was the saddest day of my life. I still think of him. Now it is nice and quiet. I like having peace and quiet for a change instead of people shooting and killing. My Christmas wish is that peace and love will last in Ireland for ever."

Mr Clinton said the time had come for people to cast aside their differences and grasp the opportunity for peace. "You...must not allow the ship of peace to sink on the rocks of old habits and hard grudges."

Brave words: Bill Clinton congratulates Catherine

He added: "There must also be progress away from the negotiating table. Violence has lessened but it has not disappeared.

"You must say to those who still would use violence for political objectives. You are the past, your day is over.

"You must also say to those who renounce violence and who take their own risks for peace that they are entitled to be full participants in the democratic process."

That comment was seen as a gesture towards the political wing of the IRA, Sinn Fein, and the protestant paramilitaries. Mr Clinton also sought to reassure all parties by insisting that what he called "honest dialogue" was not an act of surrender.

Clinton: "Violence has no place at the table of democracy"

The visit was organised with the aim of being inclusive: The Clintons strolled through both the protestant and catholic areas of Belfast.On the Falls Road, the president "bumped into" Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams drinking tea in a bakery. There followed an amicable handshake between the two.

Appeal to all sides to seize the opportunity for peace

After a visit to Londonderry, it was back to Belfast, to switch on the Christmas lights, symbolic of hopes for peace. The Christmas tree outside the City Hall had been sent from Nashville, Tennessee.
 

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