The IRA has called upon the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair to take political responsibility for the row over disarmament in Northern Ireland if he hopes to resolve it.
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Mr Tony Blair |
"The leadership of the IRA is committed to a resolution of the issue of arms," the IRA said in its New Year's message.
"This will not be resolved until the British prime minister takes political responsibility for it."
Ten days ago, the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning (IICD) called upon London and Dublin to engage the IRA as soon as possible on the issue of disarmament.
"More than six years have elapsed since our first cessation of all military operations. In the interim, we have honored all commitments we have given," the statement said.
"The search for a durable peace has presented many challenges for Irish republicans," it added. "For our part, we have risen to these challenges and helped to move the peace process forward."
"In the course of recent times, the leadership (of the IRA) has taken a number of unprecedented initiatives to enhance all genuine efforts to realize a just and lasting peace," the IRA statement said.
"The British government has failed to seize the opportunity created by these initiatives."
The IRA has permitted two separate examinations of weapons dumps by international inspectors, former Finnish president Mr Martti Ahtisaari and Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, former secretary general of South Africa's African National Congress.
However, the IRA has not made contact with the IICD since June.
"We believe that sufficient time still exists for the complete decommissioning of paramilitary arms by June 2001, and that appropriate methods can be set up for that purpose," the IICD said on December 22nd.
The commission said it already had agreement in principle on weapons schemes with the UVF and UFF.