The Ulster Unionist leader, David Trimble, has said that there has been very little actual progress at the Stormont talks. Speaking after a brief meeting with the two governments, the SDLP and Sinn Féin, he said that there was still a mountain of work to be done ahead of tomorrow's deadline. Mr Trimble said that there had been no undertaking concerning decommissioning; he said that his party was still waiting for Sinn Féin to commit itself to disarmament. The two governments maintain that there has been progress at the talks.
The publication of a crucial report on decommissioning by General John de Chastelain was delayed today due to the continuation of talks. The document had been expected this evening, but a spokesman for the British Prime Minister said that the British and Irish Governments had asked General de Chastelain to delay publication in view of the progress that was being made in the multi-party talks at Stormont.
The Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, and the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, had a series of separate and joint discussions during the day ahead of tomorrow night's deadline. Tony Blair had a 75-minute meeting with the Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, and another meeting with the Ulster Unionist leader, David Trimble. Both Mr Ahern and Blair agreed that the most significant issue down for discussion was the question of decommissioning.
Earlier, Bertie Ahern said that he detected a certain willingness amongst all parties at the talks to hammer out a settlement. Tony Blair described the talks as a moment of choice and said that it was time to choose the future and not the past. A spokesman for Mr. Blair said that he still felt a deal could be done if the gun could be removed from politics and some trust re-established between the sides.
The report by General Chastelain is likely to be a key factor in determining whether or not Sinn Féin and the Ulster Unionists can agree on power sharing. It is thought that, if General John De Chastelain is confident about the IRA's willingness to disarm by May of next year, this could help the Ulster Unionist leader, David Trimble, to strike a deal. However, Sinn Féin's Alex Maskey has said that his party cannot enlighten General de Chastelian as to what the IRA may or may not do.
Unionists are angry that two men on bomb charges have been accepted by the IRA wing in Port Laoise jail. Sinn Féin has dismissed claims that the IRA is still active as rubbish. The Progressive Unionist Party assemblyman, David Ervine, says however, that the Irish government could be acting outside the Good Friday Agreement.
