The Sinn Fein president and newly-elected MP, Mr Gerry Adams, has said he was "quite surprised" when the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, accused him of issuing a "menacing" reminder of the IRA's continued existence. "There was nothing menacing in my remarks", he said in Belfast yesterday.
In a speech last Sunday commemorating the 10 hunger-strikers who died in 1981, he asked: "Where is Margaret Thatcher? Where is John Major? They have gone away, you know." Mr Bruton charged that this was a "menacing echo" of an earlier statement by Mr Adams on the IRA: "They haven't gone away, you know."
Mr Adams rejected Mr Bruton's interpretation: "I was quite surprised by the Taoiseach's remarks. We had a rather joyous celebration of the lives and the sacrifices of the 10 hunger-strikers and a welcome for the two MPs who were elected for Sinn Fein last Thursday, and the only thing that was menacing that day was the rain. I don't want to be getting into any negative ri-ra with the Taoiseach. We all have to be very focused on moving forward."
Mr Adams said that Mr Bruton had a "huge responsibility" to give leadership in the peace process. "The Taoiseach has to - and I'm sure he will - go forward with a strategic overview of what is required."
He welcomed tomorrow's summit in London between the Taoiseach and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, and said it was good the meeting was taking place so soon. "Obviously, we want to see coming out of that meeting the next step in rebuilding the process. When John Hume and I launched our initiative we said there was a huge responsibility on the two governments to take up leadership roles and that remains the case.
"What has changed is that John Major has gone away and there is a new British government there with a huge mandate which has the ability, if it has the will - and I certainly hope that it does have the will - to join with the Irish Government in carrying out peace talks on a foundation of equality and inclusiveness.
"I also welcome the fact that Mr Blair is released from the stranglehold of unionism and that, within unionism itself, Mr Trimble no longer has a need to look backwards at Ian Paisley."
The Sinn Fain president said that there was now "a little bit of fluidity" in the situation. "Our party will do everything in its power to support and to help and to encourage all of that."
The Sinn Vein ardchomhairle (executive council) is to meet at the weekend to discuss the latest political developments and the approach Mr Adams and his fellow MP, Mr Martin McGuinness, should adopt towards Westminster.
Mr Adams added that, although the Sinn Fein constitution debarred himself and Mr McGuinness from taking part in Westminster parliamentary proceedings, "you can be assured when we go there that our faces will be well seen".
He said the rivalry between his party and the SDLP in the Westminster and local elections was a "very transient" phenomenon. "We shouldn't allow the electoral rivalry between our parties to deflect us from the bigger job of pursuing the search for peace."
Questioned about recent reports of a possible IRA ceasefire, he said: "I'm not going to add to that speculation at all." Sinn Fein was giving the new British government an opportunity to settle into office, but he hinted that the party was also taking initiatives behind the scenes.
"We're allowing time for the dust to settle. We're allowing time for people to get into their new positions and so on. At the same time, we're not wasting any time, and some of you will recall that for some long time now we have refused to discuss the private or other mechanisms which Sinn Fein have deployed or will deploy or are deploying at this time to try and ensure that the hope that's out there becomes a reality."
Mr Adams was speaking at a press conference to open Sinn Fein's local government election campaign in Belfast and Lisburn, Co Antrim.