Senator Martin Mansergh has told the Seanad that everything that he and Fr Alex Reid did, from the time of the Enniskillen bombing to the months following the Omagh bombing, was for the purpose of establishing a lasting peace.
Senator Mansergh was referring to his meeting in 1998 with Michael McKevitt of the so-called Real IRA.
He said he accepted that moral questions can be asked about such contacts, but he said such communications are necessary to secure peace.
Yesterday, the Taoiseach admitted to the Dáil that he had not informed the House about that meeting.
At the time, Senator Mansergh was a Special Advisor on the North.
