UUP demand clarity on weapons decommissioning
The Ulster Unionists are demanding further transparency on weapons decommissioning from the IRA.
A pivotal meeting of the Ulster Unionist Party’s ruling council has reportedly been postponed.
UUP leader David Trimble said the meeting had been put back due to a ‘lack of transparency’ from the IRA on weapons decommissioning.
On Tuesday, he demanded clarity on the fine details of decommissioning in General John de Chastelain’s independent report on the decommissioning process.
The council will ultimately decide whether the UUP backs new elections at Stormont.
But Mr Trimble said the UUP’s ruling council could meet on Wednesday to offer republicans another chance to detail its inventory of guns destroyed.
Both Mr Trimble and Sinn Fein counterpart Gerry Adams have publicly stated their optimism that a deal on power sharing can still be reached.
The leaders met over the weekend to discuss the fine details of plans to kickstart the stalled Northern Ireland peace process. Tony Blair and the Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern have talked via telephone.
Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams has said despite ‘momentous’ efforts by the IRA to put weapons beyond verifiable use, he was still waiting for a ‘satisfactory explanation’ on why the process was halted last Tuesday.
Mr Adams said there was ‘frustration’ and ‘anger’ among republicans after the statements by both the British and Irish governments.
He said: ‘There is no dispute that there was a momentous act of putting weapons beyond use by the IRA, we have to allow this commission to do its work, whilst the rest of us get on with doing our job of making politics perform right.
“Republicans have done all of this, and have had nothing in return…the problem is the failure or a refusal to accept both the integrity and the independence of the independent commission.”
Also on Sunday, Mr Trimble criticised IRA moves to put its weapons beyond use as “too secret.”
Mr Trimble said: ‘We welcomed decommissioning when it first occurred, but the simple truth of the matter is, that invisible acts don’t weigh very well with the general public and the result of that was that we said very clearly to Mr Adams months ago that there is no point in secret decommissioning, it has to been done in a way to maximise public confidence.’
