The United States welcomed yesterday's decommissioning report and urged the North's political parties to pay heed to it.
"We do see this as a significant step towards the Good Friday agreement's agreed goal of putting paramilitary weapons completely and verifiably beyond use," State Department spokesman Mr Richard Boucher told a news briefing in Washington.
He added: "We look forward to further progress on this issue, along with other issues in implementing the agreement."
Mr Boucher did not single out any party but made it clear the US was looking for a response to the IRA move.
"We urge all parties to consider the commission's statement carefully as they review the proposals put forward by the British and Irish governments last week," Mr Boucher said.
President Bush, on a month's "working vacation" in Crawford, Texas, spoke to his national security adviser, Ms Condoleezza Rice, and to his chief of staff, Mr Andy Card, by telephone, though it was not clear whether they discussed Northern Ireland.