Clinton told to avoid public handshake with Gerry Adams, records show

Clinton told to to avoid public handshake with Gerry Adams, records show

Bill Clinton shook hands with Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams during his presidential visit to Northern Ireland in 1995, but newly released records reveal US officials had hoped he wouldn't.

White House averse to Clinton-Adams Belfast photograph

White House officials were reluctant for then US president Bill Clinton to be photographed shaking hands with Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams during a key cross-party event in Belfast when he visited in winter 1995.

White House did not want photo of Clinton shaking Adams’ hand during 1995 visit

The then US president visited Northern Ireland before travelling to Dublin in 1995.

Clinton Told To Avoid Public Handshake With Gerry Adams, Records Show

Mr Clinton visited Northern Ireland in November 1995, becoming the first serving US president to make the trip. Mr Adams was president of Sinn Fein, regarded as the political wing of the IRA paramilitary group, between 1983 and 2018, but has always denied being a member of the IRA. Mr Clinton and Gerry Adams famously shook hands on the Falls Road in Belfast on the morning of 30 November, but official documents which have been declassified show t…