Northern Ireland's First Minister, Mr Trimble, advocated "sensible co-operation" with the Republic at the European Cross-Border Co-operation Conference in Queen's University, Belfast, yesterday.
"The development of effective co-operation throughout these islands can only have a positive impact on the economy and good governance of Northern Ireland itself," Mr Trimble said.
The conference, entitled "Lessons for and from Ireland", was organised by Mr Andy Pollak, an Irish Times journalist and director of the Centre for Cross-Border Studies, Armagh, in conjunction with Queen's Centre for International Borders Research.
Mr Trimble attempted to play down a sense of novelty about co-operation between the two jurisdictions, saying much work had gone unnoticed before official bodies such as the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC) were established. Trade between Northern Ireland and the Republic was at a normal level for two small neighbouring economies since 1990, he said.
"Today that co-operation is formalised through the NSMC, partly to allow a formal expression of the Irish identity of some of our people, but also importantly to ensure that good ideas for co-operation between North-South will be fully explored and acted upon whenever mutually beneficial," he said.
Mr Trimble said the performance of the Republic's economy was well documented and admired, not least by observers in the North. However, the success of Northern Ireland was less well publicised. Industrial output had risen by a "remarkable" 10 per cent last year, a rate higher than both the UK and the Republic.
Mr Seamus Mallon, Deputy First Minister, said the time was right to take a fresh look at economic co-operation to enhance competitiveness in the Republic and Northern Ireland.
"If we are to fulfil our promise on coming to government to make a difference we cannot blindly follow past approaches." Mr Mallon said the two economies shared many characteristics and faced numerous common challenges, despite differences in aspects of their economic development.
"Both North and South share the objective of developing and sustaining a dynamic, competitive economy in the face of increasingly wider competition in the rapidly evolving global economy," he said.
The European Cross-Border Co-operation Conference continues until tomorrow afternoon.
