Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams has publicly shaken hands with PSNI Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde during their inaugural meeting in West Belfast.
Mr Adams invited Sir Hugh to a private meeting with community representatives to discuss a feud in the area which has already claimed one life and damaged a catalogue of properties in the Ballymurphy area.
Sir Hugh Orde is welcomed with a handshake by Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams, at Whiterock leisure centre
The attendance of Sir Hugh and senior commanders is seen as a further demonstration of the acceptance of the PSNI in all parts of Northern Ireland and a sign of Sinn Féin's commitment to policing which opened the way for a political settlement.
Dialogue has centred on a dispute between two families in Ballymurphy which has been linked to over 800 incidents.
The stand-off was sparked by the stabbing to death of Gerard Devlin (39), in February 2006 near his home in the area.
Mr Adams, West Belfast MP has claimed that there were serious shortcomings in the police investigation into a string of petrol bombings and even bulldozer attack on property.
The deep mistrust of the police service of Northern Ireland in the local area was illustrated when around a dozen protesters from the Irish Republican Socialist Party heckled Mr Adams as a traitor for engaging with the Chief Constable. They held placards which said: "IRSP rejects PSNI/SS RUC."
The security presence was low-profile.
PA