Martin Ferris was probably pitching it a bit strong when he said, in an interview with the Belfast-based Irish News, that the IRA's decision to open some of its arms dumps to international inspection "saved" the peace process.
Nobody who welcomes the enormous progress that has been made in Northern Ireland would seek to underplay the importance of the initiative. Mr Ferris's own political journey underlines the distance we have come. Jailed for 10 years in the 1980s for his part in the Marita Ann gun-running affair, he is now a Sinn Fein member of Kerry County Council with a good chance of taking a Dail seat in the next election which, as we know, could come sooner rather than later.
Mr Ferris told the Irish News that he had spoken at meetings all over Munster and the south to ensure that the IRA's initiative would be forthcoming. He agreed with Gerry Adams that many republican activists found the idea hard to accept.
But, at the very least, the IRA's decision has bought much needed time for the pro-agreement parties to show that politics is working. Many supporters of the Belfast accord in this State probably share the Taoiseach's fervent wish that this latest development will bring "the decommissioning issue, hopefully, to an end".
Tony Blair disagrees with this view. While welcoming the IRA's decision to open its dumps to international inspectors, the Prime Minister says that "this is not decommissioning, it is a step along the way". British sources are saying that they hope to see the practicalities of disarmament wrapped up by June next year. This has the makings of a potentially dangerous difference between the two governments, although Peter Mandelson, grown more cautious in the ways of conflict resolution, has firmly rejected the idea of setting new deadlines.
The most obvious beneficiary of the IRA's statement is David Trimble (followed closely by Bertie Ahern who has serious cause to welcome good news on any front just now). The Ulster Unionist leader is now able to point to the initiative as vindicating his decision to go back into government with Sinn Fein. This has steadied nerves among those in his own party who voted with a heavy heart last month to restart the Executive.
It has done nothing, not surprisingly, to persuade the anti-agreement forces that the republican movement is committed to politics. The DUP is set to propose a motion in the Assembly next Tuesday demanding Sinn Fein's expulsion from government. This will not succeed, but already two members of David Trimble's party have said that they will vote in favour of the motion. Other waverers could go the same way - if not now, then at some future date.
The hard reality is that David Trimble no longer commands the support of a majority of the unionist forces within the Assembly. There is unlikely to be any challenge to his leadership before the autumn, but we are entering a difficult period - Drumcree, the possibility of violence over the summer - which could weaken his position further.
On the republican side, the IRA's decision has caused deep, perhaps even mutinous, unease. Ruairi O Bradaigh has described it as an act of "surrender and betrayal" which amounts to abandoning the republican movement's historic objectives. Intelligence sources confirm there is a serious danger of more defections to splinter groups. Nobody would willingly resurrect memories of Omagh, but it does provide a cautionary reminder of what horrific damage can be done by a few determined and ruthless people.
The most important issue, which has the potential to raise the political temperature on both sides, is the future of the RUC. The British government hopes to speed up the committee stage of the Northern Ireland (Police) Bill at Westminster with a target date of July 6th, just at the start of the Orange marching season. This means that Peter Mandelson will have to announce a decision on key elements of the Patten report, including the name of the force and what symbols will be incorporated into its official insignia.
According to Sinn Fein sources, any attempt to pull back from the Patten report could still derail the peace process. At the very least it would mean that the party would refuse to recommend that young nationalists should join the new force. At the same time, unionist politicians remain confident that there will be concessions on making Patten more acceptable to their community.
Some readers may find all this unduly gloomy at a time when Northern Ireland has found itself in the unusual position of providing some of the rare good news around. There is hopeful evidence that the new politics is not just bedding down, but is being seen to deliver positive benefits. The pictures of David Trimble and Seamus Mallon returning from Brussels with £940 million of EU money in their pockets for Northern Ireland provided a powerful image of just how bright a future could be on offer.
Increasingly politics revolves around humdrum matters such as upgrading the railway system, the future of the eleven-plus, hospital closures. Boring - and all the better for it.
But the peace process is not quite home and dry. There must be concern that Bertie Ahern and - to a slightly lesser extent - Tony Blair are now so consumed with domestic political problems that they are likely to have much less time to devote to the full implementation of the Belfast Agreement. Decommissioning has not gone away, you know. There is still some considerable distance to travel.