Peace process entering 'defining period'

The peace process is entering a "defining period", Sinn Féin's chief negotiator, Martin McGuinness, said yesterday.

At Dublin airport before departing on a three-day visit to New York and Washington, Mr McGuinness said republicans were ready to take "hard decisions".

"From our perspective, what we want to see is all of the other parties, whether it be the unionist parties, the two governments facing up to hopefully what will be the real challenges and real opportunities that lie ahead."

Mr McGuinness refused to be drawn on claims by Minister for Justice Michael McDowell that the Sinn Féin MP, along with Gerry Adams and Kerry North TD Martin Ferris, had recently stepped down from the IRA army council.

"I have absolutely no interest in what Michael McDowell has to say. I think the less said about him the better. I am more interested in working with those who are positive and constructive within the process, those who want the process to work than those who want to throw cheap shots at the expense of others."

Asked whether there had been any change in his relationship with the IRA, Mr McGuinness replied: "How many times have I answered that question over the last 30 years? I have a funny feeling that Michael McDowell is a member of an army council somewhere but what army I honestly just don't know."

Mr McGuinness said he would meet the US envoy to Northern Ireland, Mitchell Reiss, as well as "our friends and the friends of the peace process in Capitol Hill and friends of Sinn Féin in New York.

"This is an opportunity for us to brief all of them on the current work within the peace process and obviously our main concentration has been on getting a positive result which will propel the situation forward."

Asked whether an IRA statement would be delivered imminently, he replied: "Gerry Adams and I have resisted getting into any speculation about any of these matters. I think the Taoiseach has said we should all be patient. The IRA have clearly indicated that they are involved in work. We need to give them space to complete that work."

He said people could make their own judgment on his visit to New York when he returned. However, "this is, I think, as we all know and understand, a defining period in the process.

"The vast majority of the people of Ireland voted for the Good Friday agreement. Therefore, there is an imperative on ourselves as politicians to deliver for the Irish people. As someone who has lived in a bigoted, sectarian Northern state for far too long, I want to be part of a power-sharing administration. I want to see unionists part of an all-Ireland ministerial council. And I want to see all of us working together to bring about the wide range of changes that the Good Friday agreement heralded for everyone, which I believe would be to the benefit of everyone."

Asked what he would say to members of Sinn Féin who were nervous of change, he replied: "I would say they are part of one of the more intelligent political constituencies in the whole of western Europe.

"They are a proud people, part of a proud struggle ... Hard choices, hard decisions have to be taken, and I think republicans are up for that."