The US administration has told The Irish Times that a commitment from Sinn Féin to join the North's policing board is not a precondition for Gerry Adams being allowed to raise funds when he visits the US next week.
Administration sources said that US officials cited in a report in yesterday's paper did not accurately reflect official policy.
Sinn Féin is allowed to raise funds in the US but, since January, visiting politicians from the party have not been granted visas which would permit them to take part in fund-raising activities.
Some figures within the administration believe that Mr Adams should not be allowed to visit the US at all until Sinn Féin makes positive public statements about policing in the North.
The US special envoy for Northern Ireland, Dr Mitchell Reiss, declined to comment on the visa issue but said he hoped Mr Adams would visit Washington.
"I hope that Mr Adams will come to the United States next week in support of the peace process. The confidentiality of individual visa applications prohibits us from providing details as to its status," he said.
Administration sources said that the US was indeed concerned that Sinn Féin's refusal to engage with the Police Service of Northern Ireland left some Catholic neighbourhoods in the North prey to dissident republicans. The sources said that the PSNI's handling of loyalist riots in September, when officers took 150 live rounds from rioters, showed that it was an entirely different force compared with the RUC.
