Hillary's Perky Cheers Brought Peace To Northern Ireland

Hillary Clinton the New York senator has cited her involvement in the Northern Ireland peace process as an example of her foreign policy credentials and accused Barack Obama of "nitpicking".

Mrs Clinton visited Northern Ireland several times while her husband Bill was US president as he was involved in the negotiations which led to 1998's Good Friday Agreement.

"I actually went to Belfast more than Bill did as part of what I was doing to help the process," she said.

Mrs Clinton added that she continues to be engaged with leaders from Northern Ireland and questioned whether Mr Obama could say the same.

"Just this week I was called to meet with the secretary of state for Northern Ireland," said Mrs Clinton.

Former SDLP leader John Hume has come out in support of Mrs Clinton over the issue.

"I am quite surprised that anyone would suggest that Hillary Clinton did not perform important foreign policy work as first lady," he said.

However, former UUP leader David Trimble has likened her role to that of a "cheerleader".

"I don't know there was much she did apart from accompanying Bill going around," he said.

Mr Hume and Trimble jointly won the Nobel prize for peace for their efforts in the peace negotiations.