The Ulster Unionist Party is confident that the "momentum of disarmament" can be maintained, a re-instated UUP minister, Sir Reg Empey, has said.
While "one swallow did not make a summer", it was important at this stage to have faith in the three international decommissioning commissioners who were "men of standing", Sir Reg added.
"General de Chastelain will continue working within his remit and we know that his remit and his mandate is to achieve the disposal of all paramilitary weapons. We know that there is a lot of scepticism among unionists and that could hardly be otherwise after the experience of the last three decades. But we do believe that the time has come to test this, to take at face value the word of the three international decommissioning commissioners. If subsequently we find that there is any skulduggery, I believe, knowing the way in which info communicates itself in this country, that it will come to our attention sooner or later."
The UUP's 110-strong ruling executive will meet on Saturday to vote on Mr Trimble's recommendation to rejoin the power-sharing Stormont Executive. It is expected that his proposal will be endorsed by a majority of executive members.
Sir Reg said he was keen to take up his ministerial responsibilities again. "Our party will discuss these matters on Saturday. There will be a very clear recommendation from the leadership to proceed on the basis of the leader's report which will be given in considerable detail on Saturday morning. We will await the outcome and the decision of our colleagues at that stage." The UUP minister heavily criticised the DUP for continuously having dismissed the possibility of decommissioning. It had made a "monumental miscalculation on both devolution and decommissioning", he added.
"People have stood in this hall and told us time after time after time that this would never happen. We have had an artificial situation where unionists have been under-represented in the Executive and we are now calling on the DUP to follow through the logic and fully rejoin the Executive to maximise unionist representation at the table where decisions are made," Sir Reg insisted.
Republicans had made a "right, if late" decision, one that was "very significant" and that contained "considerable potential".