The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Dermot Ahern, has said Sinn Féin must decide if it is committed to politics.
He reiterated the Government's belief that the Belfast bank robbery was carried out by people associated with the IRA "in some shape or form."
He added: "Sinn Féin cannot adopt the attitude that it is innocent in all of this."
Mr Ahern claimed it was well known, particularly in Northern areas, that leading IRA members had been involved in criminal activity.
However, the Minister stressed that this did not mean an end to the move to restore devolved government in the North.
"We need to protect the gains that we have already achieved, we need to examine new avenues and we can't ignore, and neither can Sinn Féin, or indeed the DUP, the principles of the Good Friday Agreement. And we had a situation where the DUP was actually accepting the principles of the Good Friday Agreement."
He added: "So what we achieved in the run up to the end of last year was extremely significant and we can't go back and do away with those gains. We need to look forward."
