Daytime military foot patrols in the mainly-nationalist district of west Belfast will cease from today but mobile patrols will continue for the time being. Announcing the move, the RUC Chief Constable, Mr Ronnie Flanagan, said: "We will keep continuously under review the question of mobile patrolling."
On south Armagh, where nationalists have also complained about the level of security forces' activity, Mr Flanagan claimed there were "many fewer" military helicopter flights in and out of the Crossmaglen base since the latest IRA ceasefire.
"Movement can be expected across a whole range of areas. The threat presented to us and the public in south Armagh is of a very different nature, so that brings about a different response from us and a different pace in change of that response," he said.
The west Belfast decision was condemned by the leader of the Democratic Unionists, the Rev Ian Paisley, who said it was "a sure sign that the peace process is a concession process to IRA terrorism".
He added: "This is a move the police will live to regret. The deterrent against the IRA is being removed while the IRA retain their lethal weapons of war."
But Mr Alex Attwood, an SDLP councillor in the area, said the move was welcome but insufficient: "The people of west Belfast deserve to enjoy the benefits of peace as much as anyone else in Northern Ireland."
Sinn Fein's Northern chairman, Mr Gearoid O hEara, said: "Any reduction is viewed as a step in the right direction, but this particular announcement falls far short of what nationalists expect after four months of a disciplined IRA cessation."
For the first time since the foundation of the RUC, the British government has set out a series of policy objectives for the force. These were announced to mixed reaction yesterday by the Northern Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam.
She said her aim was to make the RUC more efficient and accountable but stressed the need for continuing vigilance against paramilitaries.
"It is a sad fact that, in spite of the IRA and loyalist ceasefires, terrorism remains a problem; there are extremist factions from both sides of the political divide that continue to pursue campaigns of violence, and even those organisations which are observing a ceasefire remain armed and in being. The police must, therefore, remain vigilant. I regret having to include a priority in this area, and look forward to phasing it out as soon as possible."
A spokesman for the RUC welcomed the initiative as "a vital ingredient" in the force's efforts to provide a constantly-improving service. The chairman of the Police Authority, Mr Pat Armstrong, said: "We've been pressing for this for some time." However, Sinn Fein said that nothing short of the "complete disbandment" of the RUC would satisfy nationalists. Dr Mowlam set out her policing priorities for 1998-99 as follows:
to counter the terrorist threat on behalf of the community and bring to justice those responsible for terrorist crimes.
to maintain public order, thereby providing for the protection and security of the public.
to reduce violent crime in Northern Ireland and increase the proportion of violent crimes detected.
to reduce burglaries in Northern Ireland and increase the proportion of domestic burglaries detected.
to reduce the number of those killed and seriously injured in road traffic accidents.
to target the supply of illegal drugs and to work in partnership with other agencies in tackling the problem of drug misuse.
In addition, "performance indicators" have been issued to the RUC, designed to measure how successfully police meet the objectives.
Dr Mowlam said she was discussing with colleagues the introduction in parliament of a draft police bill to give statutory force to the new objectives and open the way for devolution of control over police resources from headquarters to local commanders.
The Sinn Fein chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, said: "Instead of setting targets for the RUC, Mo Mowlam should be actively seeking the creation of a democratic and accountable police service which is fully representative of the community it polices."