The British government is under renewed pressure to take the initiative to break the political deadlock in Northern Ireland. President Clinton has proposed a new sequencing arrangement implicitly beginning with a move on policing and demilitarisation.
Mr Clinton and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, are understood to have further discussed at Chequers last night how the political impasse could be ended, after a day in Belfast in which the President exhorted the community and pro-agreement parties to resolve their differences.
"I am convinced they all genuinely want this peace process to work. They know how far it has come. They know how irresponsible it would be to let it fail," Mr Clinton told an audience of 8,000 in Belfast's new Odyssey Centre yesterday.
He outlined how the deadlock could be broken. "First, the Patten report must be implemented, and on that basis leaders from every part of the community must commit to make the new police service work. There must be security normalisation and arms must be put beyond use," he said.
His proposals, as expected, involve a sequencing arrangement around the issues of police reform, the dismantling of the British army towers in south Armagh, and the IRA actively putting its arms beyond use.
This particularly puts the responsibility for a breakthrough on the British government, Sinn Fein and the SDLP. Informed insiders said last night it was significant that the sequence as expressed by Mr Clinton would first involve movement from the British government.
Mr Clinton, in his valedictory presidential visit to Ireland and Britain, and Mr Blair engaged in "plain-speaking" parallel talks with Mr Gerry Adams, Mr Seamus Mallon and Mr David Trimble at Stormont yesterday.
Afterwards, Mr Clinton had an enthusiastic reception in the Odyssey Centre, although Mr Trimble left during his speech to catch a flight to Palermo.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, will be in direct contact with the British Prime Minister shortly, a Government spokesman said last night. The spokesman said the Taoiseach felt that President Clinton's meetings in Belfast had been very worthwhile. "We believe that the talks helped create an atmosphere where the negotiations can progress and move on to a more intense phase", he said.
Irish officials were in Belfast throughout yesterday and will maintain contact with their British counterparts today.
Mr Blair's official spokesman said there was a possibility of moving forward on some of the main issues.
