The veteran: Mr Joe Cahill, the veteran father-figure republican, swept into Hillsborough Castle yesterday, along with the rest of the Sinn Féin delegation.
The octogenarian, who was sentenced to death for a botched IRA attack in west Belfast in 1942, has appeared at the shoulder of the Sinn Féin president at major points throughout this peace process.
He played a highly visible role before the calling of the IRA's first ceasefire in August 1994.
His appearances are deemed to indicate that the fundamentals of Irish republicanism are in good hands when grand decisions are called for. His presence underscores that the traditional republican line is being held to when hardliners in the ranks are inclined to shout treachery.
Often quoted as saying "I was born in a united Ireland and I want to die in one", Mr Cahill's appearance yesterday prompted much speculation that the IRA was on the threshold of a significant move to advance the political process.
The consensual nature of the Belfast Agreement, with its acceptance of vetoes and the restoration of Stormont, would appear to be at odds with the fundamentals of Mr Cahill's republicanism.
Yet the man who was a member of the first IRA army council following the split in 1969-70 justifies the current Sinn Féin strategy by insisting that current arrangements are but a stepping stone and are, therefore, acceptable.
Mr Cahill's standing within the Provisional movement has more than symbolic importance. He has long been associated with radical elements, such as Mr Gerry Adams and Mr Martin McGuinness. They benefit not only from his "laying on of hands", but also what is seen as his unerring sense of political strategy.