There is no viable alternative to the Belfast Agreement for peace in Northern Ireland, former US President Bill Clinton said today.
Mr Clinton said he did not agree with the Rev Ian Paisley's comment that the deal was dead, but said he thought the next move was in the IRA's court.
"If they were to give up their arms and criminality I think it would put a lot of pressure on Mr Paisley and others," he said.
Mr Clinton said the Agreement was fair, with majority rule, minority rights and self government.
"I hope it can still be revived," he said. Of Mr Paisley's comment that the Belfast Agreement was dead, he said: "I hope he's wrong, because nobody has come up with any better alternative, and it's fair," he said.
The former president made the comments while in Dublin for a gala dinner to raise money for a suicide prevention programme. "The public do not want to go back to the conflict.
"They've sent us a loud and clear signal they want politicians to arrange things so they can go on with their lives," he told guests the RehabCare event in Dublin.
Mr Clinton also urged people to support Non Governmental Organisations such as RehabCare, which aimed to raise half a million euro from the gala for the programme to reduce the number of people who commit suicide each year. The former President, who described himself as someone with "small brains and lots of power", said NGOs had a great deal of power to improve people's lives.