A FORMER Northern Ireland minister, Mr Michael Mates, denounced President Clinton yesterday for suggesting that Sinn Fein should be allowed to participate in the all party talks when they resume next month.
In a strongly worded article for the Mail on Sunday, Mr Mates claimed President Clinton was willing to "compromise with terrorists" to appease the 40 million Irish Americans and secure their votes.
"It is a naive, vain and craven posture, which one hopes has been given the sharpest rebuff by the British government. This is indicative of the arrogance combined with ignorance with which the United States sometimes uses its disproportionate influence over Ulster's affairs," he said.
Although Mr Mates resigned as Northern Ireland security minister in June 1993 because of his association with the fugitive tycoon, Mr Asil Nadir, he will probably always be remembered for giving the businessman a watch inscribed with the words: "Don't let the buggers get you down."
In his article, Mr Mates suggested that any attempt to hail President Clinton as a "great peacemaker" during this week's Democratic convention in Chicago would be wrong because "some of his administration's actions have given nothing but comfort to the terrorists."
After criticising President Clinton's decision to grant the Sinn Fein president, Mr Gerry Adams, a visa and allow the party to raise funds in the United States, Mr Mates suggested he was more interested in pandering to Irish Americans than in peace in Northern Ireland.
"To the people of Northern Ireland, the failure of the terrorists to end their evil trade is a continuing tragedy. To Clinton it is an opportunity for a much needed diplomatic and electoral triumph," he wrote.
Mr Mates added that if President Clinton actually wanted to help the peace process he should put "lives before votes" and stand up to terrorism.
That requires the courage to declare unequivocally that no representatives of the IRA can ever set foot in the United States without a formal and binding declaration that they have turned away from violence permanently," he said.
The Sinn Fein chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, accused Mr Mates of having made no positive contribution to the peace process.
"He is another of those endless numbers of British politicians who, over many centuries, have hypocritically lectured Irish people on democracy while denying us those same democratic principles," Mr McLaughlin said.
Ultimately, Mr Mates and his colleagues cannot escape the fact that Sinn Fein represents a significant body of political opinion which has to be treated on the same basis of equality as all other parties.
Meanwhile the Alliance leader, Dr John Alderdice, has said that the IRA might renew its ceasefire in order to present an image of peace maker on the world stage, and then try to portray other parties as the opponents of peace.