NORTHERN IRELAND'S Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness will join First Minister Ian Paisley in New York today for the announcement of a $150 million investment package in infrastructure in the North.
The announcement by the New York City Pension Funds comes at the end of Dr Paisley's four-day visit to the US in preparation for next month's investment conference in the North.
Sources close to the deal told The Irish Timesthat the pension fund would consider further investment, possibly up to $750 million, depending on the performance of the initial investment.
Last year, New York City comptroller William Thompson urged seven US companies operating in the North, in which the $105 billion pension funds own shares, to implement the MacBride principles aimed at establishing justice and equality in the workplace.
In Washington yesterday, Dr Paisley briefed members of Congress and Bush administration officials on preparations for next month's conference, which he described as a unique opportunity for the North's economy.
"This will be an historic event and it will be, I believe, the turning in the road for us as far as our economy is concerned," he said at a dinner in Washington on Wednesday night.
"I have not come here as a beggar. I have come to say, if you help us, you'll be helping yourselves. We want you to come and share in the possibility of bringing Northern Ireland back in this world of ours to the place it once had."
New York mayor Michael Bloomberg will represent President George Bush at the conference in Belfast, which the US administration views as an important step towards cementing political progress in the North.
"I'm not given to exaggeration when I describe things, but we have had a miracle in Northern Ireland," Dr Paisley said. "The atmosphere is different. The two sides to the dispute, if we might use those words, have come together, and there is a greater understanding of what motivates each side."
Dr Paisley paid tribute to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, recalling their joint visit to the Battle of the Boyne site last year. "That was the beginning, I believe, of a new relationship between ourselves and the Republic of Ireland.
" Unselfishly, the Irish Republic has helped us and I would not be doing what I must do if I did not put that firmly on the record."
In New York on Wednesday night, Irish-American groups honoured former president Bill Clinton for his contribution to the Belfast Agreement 10 years ago.
Mr Clinton spoke to the gathering at Gallagher's Steak House about his 1994 decision against strong opposition within his administration to grant Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams a US visa.
"After that visit, Gerry Adams proceeded with good faith - and if he hadn't, I would have looked like a fool," the former president said.
Hillary Clinton has pledged her commitment to supporting the political institutions in the North.
"Ultimately, the real credit for peace can only go to the brave people of Northern Ireland, as well as the leaders of Ireland and the UK," she said, "but I also know that helping to advance the peace process and to achieve the Good Friday agreement is one of my husband's proudest accomplishments as president. I too am proud to have played a role in that effort."
