The speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi has announced that she will invite the Taoiseach to address Congress next year.
Ms Pelosi made the announcement at yesterday's lunch hosted by Congressman Richard Neal, chairman of the congressional Friends of Ireland for the North's First Minister Ian Paisley and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, which was attended by up to 20 congressmen from both political parties.
Ms Pelosi did not specify a date for the Taoiseach's address to Congress.
The two Ministers end their week-long visit to the US with a meeting at the White House today with president George Bush and his national security adviser Stephen Hadley.
Mr Neal said the joint visit to Washington by Dr Paisley and Mr McGuinness was of great significance for Irish-American politicians such as himself, who had been engaged in the Northern peace process for decades.
"I think it's a great moment of personal satisfaction against long odds and constant criticism. But like Sisyphus, we continued to roll the boulder back up the hill," he said.
The focus of this week's visit has been economic rather than political, and Mr Neal said there was real interest among US investors in exploring opportunities in the North.
The Massachusetts congressman added that one of the most impressive aspects of the visit was the evident strength of the relationship between Mr McGuinness and Dr Paisley, whom many Irish-Americans long regarded with suspicion and hostility.
"I've discovered over many years of my own political career that personal relationships and the development of esteem, the development of trust, carry you through some difficult moments when you might not have the same perspective on an issue. I don't think there's a substitute for personal trust," he said.
Later in the afternoon, the two Ministers met a group of senators led by Senator Edward Kennedy, who said he felt honoured to welcome them on their first joint visit to the US capital.
"Since becoming First Minister and Deputy First Minister, Dr Paisley and Mr McGuinness have been working to solidify the peace agreement and to govern Northern Ireland effectively.
"We commend these two extraordinary leaders for showing the world that it is possible to rise above decades of bitter sectarian violence to achieve peace. We welcome them, salute them, and express our hope that Northern Ireland will continue to be peaceful and stable in the future," he said.
Earlier, Mr Bush's special envoy for Northern Ireland, Paula Dobriansky, said that the settlement in the North represented a valuable example for other conflicts and that the US was committed to its success. She said the US was still an "active partner" for peace.