III 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 157 

Commemorating the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday 

Agreement, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 30, 2023 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. MURPHY, Mrs. SHAHEEN, 

Mr. COONS, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. KAINE, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. WELCH, 

Mr. KING, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MARKEY, Ms. DUCKWORTH, and Mr. SCHUMER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Commemorating the 25th anniversary of the signing of the 

Good Friday Agreement, and for other purposes. 

Whereas, 25 years ago, on April 10, 1998, the Government 

of Ireland and the Government of the United Kingdom 

signed the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the 

‘‘Belfast Agreement’’, giving birth to a new era of peace 

in Northern Ireland; 

Whereas former Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell, 

Jr., of Maine, was appointed by President William J. 

Clinton to be United States Special Envoy for Northern 

Ireland and chaired the peace negotiations, which produced the Good Friday Agreement, marking the end of 

decades of conflict in Northern Ireland; 


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•SRES 157 IS 

Whereas the Good Friday Agreement stands as a historic and 

groundbreaking success that remains critical to peace in 

the future; 

Whereas the goals of the Good Friday Agreement remain to 

bring a new era of devolved government and democracy 

to Northern Ireland, end violence, and ensure enduring 

peace and stability for the people of the island of Ireland; 

Whereas a restored, fully functioning, Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive are essential to the facilitation of 

new opportunities and prosperity for the people of Northern Ireland; 

Whereas Congress continues to support the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent implementation agreements and arrangements in order to 

support peace on the island of Ireland; 

Whereas the new Windsor Framework, agreed in principle on 

February 27, 2023, by the United Kingdom and the European Union, will help ensure trade within the United 

Kingdom remains smooth, while protecting Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom and safeguarding its 

sovereignty as well as maintaining an open border on the 

island of Ireland and protecting the integrity of the European Union’s single market; 

Whereas, despite the historic progress in implementing the 

Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements, including the Stormont House Agreement agreed to in December 2014, important issues remain unresolved in 

Northern Ireland, including the passage of a bill of 

rights, securing justice for all victims of violence, including violence by state and nonstate actors, and reducing 

sectarian divisions and promoting reconciliation; 


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•SRES 157 IS 

Whereas the Good Friday Agreement (‘‘Rights, Safeguards 

and Equality of Opportunity’’) recognizes ‘‘the importance of respect, understanding and tolerance in relation 

to linguistic diversity,’’ and, in 2022, the United Kingdom Parliament passed the Identity and Language 

(Northern Ireland) Act providing for the official recognition of the status of the Irish language in Northern Ireland, and for the appointment of an Irish Language 

Commissioner and a Commissioner for the Ulster Scots 

and the Ulster British Tradition; 

Whereas Congress played a prominent role in support of negotiations of the Good Friday Agreement and has taken 

a leading role in promoting peace on the island of Ireland 

more broadly; 

Whereas Congress stands steadfastly committed to supporting the peaceful resolution of any and all political 

challenges in Northern Ireland; and 

Whereas the United States has a special relationship with the 

United Kingdom, including partnership on diplomatic, security, trade, economic, and foreign assistance issues: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) commemorates the 25th anniversary of the 

3 signing of the Good Friday Agreement on April 10, 

4 1998, and celebrates the historic compromise that 

5 marked the beginning of a new era of peaceful polit6 ical engagement in Northern Ireland; 

7 (2) welcomes the Windsor Framework agree8 ment between the United Kingdom and the EuroVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:57 Mar 31, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR157.IS SR157

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•SRES 157 IS 

1 pean Union, and urges all parties to continue to sup2 port peace on the island of Ireland and the prin3 ciples, objectives, and commitments of the Good Fri4 day Agreement; 

5 (3) urges all parties in Northern Ireland to re6 commit urgently to power-sharing and restoration of 

7 a fully functioning Northern Ireland Assembly and 

8 Executive; 

9 (4) expresses support for the full implementa10 tion of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent 

11 agreements, including the Windsor Framework; 

12 (5) urges all parties in Northern Ireland to 

13 work collectively to ensure the implementation of all 

14 commitments of the Good Friday Agreement and 

15 subsequent agreements so that all of the institutions 

16 of the Good Friday Agreement can operate success17 fully and sustainably and that ongoing political chal18 lenges can be overcome; 

19 (6) urges the United Kingdom Parliament and 

20 the European Union to support and implement in 

21 good faith the new Windsor Framework in order to 

22 ensure trade continues to flow smoothly within the 

23 United Kingdom and maintain an open border on 

24 the island of Ireland, while protecting the European 

25 Union’s single market; 


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•SRES 157 IS 

1 (7) supports the passage of a bill of rights for 

2 Northern Ireland and the principle of consent in re3 lation to the right of self-determination for all the 

4 people on the island of Ireland, in line with the pro5 visions of the Good Friday Agreement; 

6 (8) calls for continuing attention and action to 

7 resolve the injustices of past violence, including vio8 lence by state and nonstate actors; 

9 (9) observes that victims, survivors, and family 

10 members of victims of Troubles-era violence must be 

11 able to fully pursue justice; 

12 (10) encourages renewed attention to edu13 cational and cultural efforts that will ensure the rich 

14 language, literature, and arts of Northern Ireland 

15 endure and are not diminished, in line with the Good 

16 Friday Agreement commitments on ‘‘Rights, Safe17 guards and Equality of Opportunity’’; 

18 (11) expresses support for the new Windsor 

19 Framework, part of the European Union-United 

20 Kingdom Withdrawal Agreement, which ensures 

21 through international agreement that no ‘‘hard bor22 der’’ will be reintroduced on the island of Ireland; 

23 (12) greatly values the close relationships the 

24 United States shares with both the United Kingdom 

25 and Ireland; and 


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1 (13) takes into account, as relevant, conditions 

2 requiring that obligations under the Good Friday 

3 Agreement be met as the United States seeks to ne4 gotiate a mutually advantageous and comprehensive 

5 trade agreement between the United States and the 

6 United Kingdom. 

Æ 


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