European Commission President José Manuel Barroso has hailed the Northern Ireland peace process as an inspiration to the EU and the wider world.
He also told First Minister Rev Ian Paisley and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness yesterday in Brussels that the EU executive would continue to support Northern Ireland with financial aid and technical assistance in the years ahead.
"Northern Ireland should be an example of what peace can do for people. We must use the Northern Ireland success story as an inspiration for other parts of the world," said Mr Barroso, who left his sick bed to meet the two former enemies, now allies.
At their first meeting at EU headquarters, Dr Paisley presented Mr Barroso with some "fadge" or potato bread, which Mr Barroso initially mistook for fudge. But he promised to try the culinary delicacy now he had recovered from his bout of gastric flu. The First Minister swept aside the verbal misunderstanding and extolled the president's virtues.
"For 25 years when I was a Euro MP I had to knock on doors and bow and scrape and sometimes nearly get thrown out," said Dr Paisley, who was once evicted from the European Parliament in Strasbourg for protesting against a visit by Pope John Paul II.
"Things are different now. We in Northern Ireland have a voice in high places," he said.
Mr Barroso has pledged to address an important investment conference in Belfast in May either by video link or in person. Regional Development Commissioner Danuta Hubner confirmed she would attend the conference.
She also announced that the first €42 million of the €1.1 billion EU funding earmarked for Northern Ireland in the 2007-2013 budget had already been allocated, making Northern Ireland one of the first EU regions to access EU aid. No new money is available but she said a Northern Ireland taskforce set up by the commission was working to provide new ideas, technical support and to facilitate the faster drawdown of EU funding.
Ronnie Hall, chairman of the EU taskforce, said it had identified the very low take-up in the Erasmus student exchange programme by Northern Irish students as one problem.
"Whereas Queen's University Belfast took in 158 students from the rest of Europe in 2004-2005, only 58 students went from Queen's to other European universities . . . Erasmus is a fantastic opportunity for students to study in other countries," said Mr Hall, who added that an interim report by the taskforce next month would address other problems.
Mr Barroso also indicated that the Northern Ireland Executive could co-operate with the European Commission in projects using experience of conflict resolution in other places. "I support the idea of using the Northern Ireland success story as an inspiration for other parts of the world. I think this expertise can be used in other parts of the world," he said.
Yet despite the goodwill and spirit of reconciliation evident at the meeting, Dr Paisley refused an invitation to shake hands with Mr McGuinness as an Irish Times "gimmick". "I have put on record that I am sick of people shaking hands and then going on and cutting one another's throats. It is far better for us to behave in decency with people . . . and prove our sincerity," he said.
Mr McGuinness also denied that Sinn Féin's request for support from the EU was hypocritical, given that it was campaigning against the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland.
"Unfortunately for me anyway as an Irish republican I live in a part of the country, alongside the First Minister, where we are actually denied the opportunity to have a say on the treaty," he said.
"This is important work and President Barroso is well aware of both Ian Paisley and my opinions on many of these matters . . . this certainly doesn't affect the very good relationships that we have in this town."
Dr Paisley said he felt Britain should have its own referendum on the treaty. "We were promised one and that seems to have faded, but that doesn't mean I will come in here and strike the president of the EU and say I don't want anything to do with you. I mean, we are in a democracy," he said.
Mr Barroso reiterated that he hoped Ireland would vote yes in its referendum and declined to comment on Sinn Féin's campaign against the treaty.