Taoiseach Micheál Martin has confirmed he will be meeting the Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster to discuss issues she has raised regarding allegations of Garda collusion in IRA murders.

He has also accused the British Government of not following through on the commitment made by former Prime Minister Tony Blair to hold a public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane.

Ms Foster has written to Mr Martin requesting a meeting on collusion, saying there are "many unanswered questions" regarding the role of the Irish state in arming and assisting the IRA during the Troubles.

The DUP leader listed a number of incidents where it has been alleged there was collusion between gardaí and the IRA.

The letter - seen by RTÉ News and the Sunday Independent - also cites the Smithwick tribunal, which found there was collusion in the murders of two RUC officers in south Armagh in March 1989.

Chief superintendent Harry Breen and superintendent Bob Buchanan were killed in an IRA ambush on their way back to Belfast after a meeting in Dundalk Garda Station.

"The tribunal reported in December 2013 but to date no further action has been taken," the letter said.

Asked this evening for his response to that letter, the Taoiseach said that his office has been in touch with the First Minister's office "and we've agreed to meet and to discuss the specific issues that the First Minister has raised and the cases that the First Minister has raised in her correspondence with me".

He added: "The Irish Government has stepped up to the plate in relation to these issues, we initiated the Smithwick Inquiry in relation to alleged collusion involving An Garda Síochána in relation to the murder of members of the RUC.

"The British Government did not follow through in terms of the Finucane inquiry and in our view they should have, it was part of an agreement between Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern at the time at Weston Park."

He said that the Government is "always open to uncovering the true stories" and has nothing to hide, while the people who lost loved ones in unacceptable circumstances "deserve all the answers that they can possibly get".

Ms Foster referred to the issue of collusion being highlighted last week when the British government again rejected calls to establish a public inquiry into the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane.

"It is with this in mind that I wanted to set out some issues that are the responsibility of your administration and with which your Government can assist," she wrote.

Ms Foster also mentioned the families of the ten Protestant civilians murdered by the IRA at Kingsmills in south Armagh in January 1976, who have repeatedly requested that the Irish government hand over any documents that could assist in their search for justice.

"Despite having met with the Foreign Minister Simon Coveney TD, representing the previous Irish Government, nothing has been forthcoming in relation to this matter," she said.

The letter also referred to the murder of Ian Sproule by the IRA outside his home in Castlederg in Co Tyrone in 1991.

In an attempt to justify the murder, the IRA later showed a journalist Garda intelligence which it claimed indicated he had been involved In a loyalist paramilitary attacks in Co Donegal.

The murders of Northern Ireland High Court Judge Maurice Gibson and his wife Lade Cecily in a bomb attack in South Armagh in April 1987 are also highlighted.

They were travelling home from Dublin Airport after returning from a holiday in the US when a car bomb exploded as their vehicle passed.

Three Irish international rugby players travelling the opposite direction on their way to a training session in Dublin were injured in the bombing.

The driver, Ulster Rugby captain Davy Irwin, pulled teammates Nigel Carr and Philip Rainey from the wreckage. Carr's injuries ruled him out of the World Cup in New Zealand that year.

The DUP leader also mentioned the Narrow Water Massacre, when 18 members of the British Parachute Regiment were killed in a double IRA bomb attack just outside Warrenpoint in August 1979.

The First Minister thanks the Taoiseach for his"swift condemnation" of the tweet last week by Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley about that attack, which she describes as "disgraceful" and said it "caused very considerable offence in Northern Ireland".

Her letter quoted a comment by Simon Coveney in an interview with BBC Radio Ulster last month when he said: "There needs to be real recognition (for victims) on the basis of truth".

She stated: "I absolutely agree and I believe strongly that if your Government wants to play its role in getting to the truth and thereby assisting reconciliation, then it should seek to urgently assist in the above cases and supply the necessary documentation, as well as examining the recommendations of, and the new evidence that came to light in, the Smithwick Tribunal.

"There are many unanswered questions regarding the role of the Irish state in arming and assisting the IRA in its campaign of terror during 'the Troubles' and there can be no doubt that all these matters need a fresh examination if we are all to get to the truth of what happened in our shared past."

Stating that "there are other terrible murders" where there are allegations of collusion, Ms Foster said she would like to discuss the matters with the Taoiseach in the near future.

Additional reporting: Vincent Kearney