The Democratic Unionist Party and its leader, the Rev Ian Paisley, signalled to friends and enemies at the weekend that it was prepared to enter peace talks and share power with Sinn Féin, if the Provisional IRA destroyed its weapons. The obvious appetite of the DUP for government is one of the more reassuring developments of recent months.
For, as the leading unionist party in Northern Ireland, it has an effective veto on the re-establishment of the institutions set up under the Belfast Agreement.
The party conference was as much a celebration of a signal electoral victory as confirmation of the newly-pragmatic approach of the DUP to power-sharing. The deputy leader, Mr Peter Robinson, told delegates he would work day and night to restore devolved government to Northern Ireland. But, he insisted, the party would not sacrifice its principles. Dr Paisley was, at the same time, edging forward to deal with the traditional enemy, while setting down new conditions.
Both men made it perfectly plain they were not going to accept any undertakings by the IRA or Sinn Féin leadership on trust. They wanted absolute clarity from the two Governments on the various paramilitary questions involved. As far as they were concerned, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, Mr David Trimble, had been misled and outmanoeuvred on those issues. Arms decommissioning had to precede any serious involvement with Sinn Féin.
The DUP line on paramilitarism reflected the difficulties that have overtaken the most recent government efforts to re-establish a power-sharing executive. A route map circulated by the British Prime Minister, Mr Blair, was called into question last week when it became clear the IRA would not engage in "acts of completion" in advance of guarantees that the DUP would reinstate the executive and the other institutions under the Belfast Agreement. Now, Dr Paisley has said there can be no political progress until the two governments define what is required of the IRA in terms of acts of completion.
In spite of all that, the DUP is obviously prepared to deal. Mr Robinson - and colleagues like Mr Nigel Dodds, Mr Jeffrey Donaldson and Mr Gregory Campbell - are hungry for power. They know that in any power-sharing executive, the DUP would have four ministerial seats, compared to two each for Sinn Féin, the UUP and the SDLP. In that context, Dr Paisley has suggested the DUP would not accept a system of first and second ministers, with the second minister having an effective veto.
Early political progress is considered unlikely, given the demands being made on the Provisional IRA. The immediate focus of the DUP is on the European Parliament elections, where Mr Jim Allister is being groomed to replace Dr Paisley. His success would confirm the dominance of the party within unionism and strengthen its negotiating position. After that, the pressure on republicans is likely to intensify.