The Congo operation in 1960 marked the first opportunity for the Defence Forces to serve alongside armies from other nations. That experience showed that Irish troops were as well trained and suited to peacekeeping as those of any other nationality. Subsequent peacekeeping experiences in places such as the Lebanon, Bosnia, Kosovo, East Timor and Cyprus have reinforced that conviction. Speaking during a visit to Ireland in 1998, the former US President, Bill Clinton, said that he could not leave Ireland without acknowledging that there were few nations which had contributed more than Ireland, even in times of difficulty for this country, to the cause of peace and human rights around the world.