Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams has rejected an assessment ordered by the British government that found IRA members believe the Provisional IRA army council oversees the IRA and Sinn Féin with an overarching strategy.
Speaking to RTÉ, Mr Adams said it was the membership of Sinn Féin that runs the party and the Ard Fheis is the supreme authority of the party.
He said the party is not accountable or directed by any outside body or organisation.
Mr Adam's comments follow the release of a report into paramilitary activity in Northern Ireland and a garda report into the Provisional IRA.
The reports concluded that the structures of the Provisional IRA remain in existence but in a much reduced form.
They were published in the wake of a breakdown at Stormont over a murder that has been linked to the IRA.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One, he said "the contrived" crisis arose following the deaths of Gerard 'Jock' Davison and Kevin McGuigan and that all of the issues need to be dealt with during newly-convened all-party talks.
He said the onus is not just on Sinn Féin to deal with the issues and said that strategic involvement from Taoiseach Enda Kenny is needed.
Mr Adams said Sinn Féin stands with the PSNI and the gardaí against criminality and that members of the party have paid a price for that.
He said: "We put our lives on the line going against those who masquerade as republicans".
He said that if people are involved in crime, by definition, they are not republican and he said there is no space for any armed groups or remnants of them.
Later he added that he wants to live in a peaceful democratic society but admitted "we haven't got there yet".
SF have responsibility to address issues 'given origins and connections'
Speaking earlier today Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald said Sinn Féin needs to address the issues raised in the two reports into paramilitary activity.
Speaking to RTÉ's Today with Sean O'Rourke, Ms Fitzgerald said: "Sinn Féin clearly have a particular responsibility given their origins and given their connections to address these issues.”
Former taoiseach Bertie Ahern described yesterday's report as "positive". However, he said he would like to see all structures of paramilitarism gone for good.
When asked if Sinn Féin is still being influenced by the army council, he replied "that is what the report says".
Mr Ahern also said that the real threat is from dissident groups.
Meanwhile, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party has said Sinn Féin needs to accept the conclusions of the report.
Mike Nesbitt said the report made it clear that the IRA still existed.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said he wanted to accept Sinn Féin's political mandate but he would not accept the rights of representatives of the army council of the IRA to have political influence.
Mr Nesbitt said: "I wish to respect Sinn Féin's electoral mandate and it is a very strong mandate, it's stronger than the Ulster Unionists' current political mandate.
"I will not accept the right of faceless, nameless people who represent the army council of the IRA to have political influence. Are they giving political advice to Martin McGuinness? These are very serious questions and they need to be answered."
However, Sinn Féin MLA Conor Murphy rejected claims that there is an army council of the IRA overseeing the political agenda of the party.
"I draw my instructions in terms of my republican activism from the Sinn Féin Ard Comhairle. It's a very open and democratic process ... and we don't seek or draw any instruction or guidance from any other organisation."
DUP MP Gregory Campbell has said that Sinn Féin need to be clear about how it intends to dismantle the structures of the provisional IRA including its army council.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One he said following the commencement the DUP would like to see another independent assessment to show that work on dismantling had actually begun.
"What we would want to see now is what Sinn Féin plan to do, how they plan to deconstruct that organisation. And then we would look for another independent assessment to see that had actually begun. And then with an end time to see its completion" he said.
The Taoiseach and British Prime Minister David Cameron reviewed political developments in Northern Ireland during a 15-minute phone call yesterday.
Mr Kenny and Mr Cameron discussed the need to increase the pace in political negotiations and yield results as soon as possible.
