THE Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, will discuss the Northern Ireland peace process with Vice President Al Gore at the White House this morning instead of with President Clinton, who is recovering from, knee surgery following his fall last week.
Vice President Gore will also host the White House reception for the Taoiseach in the afternoon. The Vice President is also expected to replace Mr Clinton at the Speaker's lunch for the "Taoiseach on Capitol Hill tomorrow.
President Clinton, who is insisting on going ahead with his summit meeting with President Yeltsin in Helsinki on Wednesday, may meet the Russian Foreign Minister, Mr Yevgeny Primakov, today in the White House. Mr Primakov is in Washington to prepare for the summit, at which NATO expansion will be the main topic.
President Clinton cancelled a meeting, planned for today, with King Hussein of Jordan because of his injury. The two hour operation on Saturday to reattach the torn quadriceps tendon to his kneecap was pronounced successful but the President will have to use crutches for six to eight weeks as well as a leg brace.
While there will be disappointment in the Irish delegation that President Clinton will not be involved in this year's traditional St Patrick's Day visit to the White House, it is acknowledged that Vice President Gore also has a keen interest in the peace process.
He has participated in other meetings between President Clinton and the Taoiseach and has represented the President at the Forum on Irish Affairs organised by the Democratic Party during last year's election campaign. The fact that he is the possible successor to President Clinton also makes Mr Gore an important interlocutor for the Government on Irish affairs.
Today's discussion between Mr Gore and the Taoiseach is expected to last about 20 minutes. The Secretary of State, Ms Madeleine Albright, and the National Security Adviser, Mr Sandy F Berger, are also expected to attend.
This meeting will be followed by the presentation of a bowl of shamrock to the Vice President. There will also be a brief exchange on Northern Ireland between the two men.
The White House reception for the Taoiseach, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., will be a social occasion at which the Vice President, and probably Mrs Tipper Gore, will formally welcome the guests. Two girls choirs from Belfast schools will entertain the guests.
They include the numerous Northern Ireland politicians in Washington at this time, representing all the parties involved in the Stormont peace talks, except the Rev Ian Paisley's Democratic Unionists, which has turned down the invitation. Sinn Fein has not been invited but the party chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, has, had informal contacts here with administration officials as well as members of Congress.
The reception will be followed by a "St Patrick's Day Celebration" at the residence of the Irish Ambassador, Mr Dermot Gallagher, and his wife, Maeve.
The British ambassador, Sir John Kerr, and Lady Kerr are hosting a St Patrick's Day lunch at their residence for the Northern Ireland politicians.