III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 117 

Expressing support for the full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement, or the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent agreements and arrangements for implementation to support peace on the island of Ireland. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 16, 2021 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. 

MARKEY, Mr. COONS, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. SCHUMER, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. 

CASEY, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. KAINE, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. CARDIN, and Mr. 

REED) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the full implementation of the Good 

Friday Agreement, or the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent agreements and arrangements for implementation 

to support peace on the island of Ireland. 

Whereas, 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’’; 

Whereas the goals of the Good Friday Agreement were to 

bring a new era of devolved government and democracy 

to Northern Ireland, end violence, and ensure peace for 

the people of the island of Ireland; 


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•SRES 117 IS 

Whereas the successful negotiation of the Good Friday Agreement stands as a historic and groundbreaking success 

that has proven critical to the decades of relative peace 

that have followed; 

Whereas the return to power sharing in 2020 after the collapse of power-sharing institutions in 2017 creates new 

opportunities for strengthening peace and reconciliation 

in Northern Ireland; 

Whereas the agreement between the United Kingdom and the 

European Union on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, and the protocol to that 

agreement on Northern Ireland preserving an open border on the island of Ireland (in this preamble referred to 

as the ‘‘Northern Ireland Protocol’’), are intended to protect the peace forged under the Good Friday Agreement; 

Whereas, despite the historic progress of 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 state-sponsored violence, and reducing sectarian divisions and promoting 

reconciliation; 

Whereas section 6 of the Good Friday Agreement (‘‘Rights, 

Safeguards and Equality of Opportunity’’) recognizes 

‘‘the importance of respect, understanding and tolerance 

in relation to linguistic diversity’’ as part of ‘‘the cultural 

wealth of the island of Ireland’’ and declares the Government of the United Kingdom will seek ways to encourage 

the use of and education in the Irish language and provide opportunities for Irish language arts; 


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•SRES 117 IS 

Whereas the reintroduction of barriers, checkpoints, or personnel on the island of Ireland, also known as a ‘‘hard 

border’’, including through the invocation of Article 16 of 

the Northern Ireland Protocol, would threaten the successes of the Good Friday Agreement; 

Whereas the United States 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; and 

Whereas Congress greatly values the close relationships the 

United States shares with both the United Kingdom and 

Ireland and stands steadfastly committed to supporting 

the peaceful resolution of any and all political challenges 

in Northern Ireland: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) urges the United Kingdom and the Euro3 pean Union to support peace on the island of Ireland 

4 and the principles, objectives, and commitments of 

5 the Good Friday Agreement, also known as the 

6 ‘‘Belfast Agreement’’; 

7 (2) expresses support for the full implementa8 tion of the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent 

9 agreements, including the Stormont House Agree10 ment agreed to in December 2014, as well as the 

11 protocol on Northern Ireland to the agreement on 

12 the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the Eu13 ropean Union (in this resolution referred to as the 

14 ‘‘Northern Ireland Protocol’’); 


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•SRES 117 IS 

1 (3) congratulates all parties in Northern Ire2 land for the return in January 2020 to a power3 sharing agreement; 

4 (4) urges all parties in Northern Ireland to 

5 work collectively to ensure the implementation of all 

6 commitments of the Good Friday Agreement and 

7 subsequent agreements so that all of the institutions 

8 of the Good Friday Agreement can operate success9 fully and sustainably and that ongoing political chal10 lenges can be overcome; 

11 (5) calls for continuing attention and action to 

12 resolve the injustices of past violence, including 

13 state-sponsored violence; 

14 (6) supports the passage of a Bill of Rights for 

15 Northern Ireland and the right of all the people on 

16 the island of Ireland to self-determine their future as 

17 provided for in the Good Friday Agreement; 

18 (7) encourages renewed attention to educational 

19 and cultural efforts that will ensure the rich lan20 guage, literature, and arts of Northern Ireland en21 dure and are not diminished; 

22 (8) expresses support for the Northern Ireland 

23 Protocol and its full implementation, which ensures 

24 through international agreement that no ‘‘hard borVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:47 Mar 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR117.IS SR117

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•SRES 117 IS 

1 der’’ will be reintroduced on the island of Ireland; 

2 and 

3 (9) will insist that any new or amended trade 

4 agreements and other bilateral agreements between 

5 the Government of the United States and the Gov6 ernment of the United Kingdom take into account, 

7 as relevant, conditions requiring that obligations 

8 under the Good Friday Agreement be met. 

Æ 


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