Blair-Ahern summit as 'revolution row flares'

Prime Minister Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern are tonight preparing for a summit in London on the peace process as the row continued over a leading republican’s claim that the revolution was not over.

Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams dismissed unionist criticism of Brian Keenan’s comments to republicans in south Armagh that the Good Friday Agreement would stand or fall over the coming weeks.

Mr Keenan, who is reputedly the IRA’s go-between with the international De Chastelain arms decommissioning body, said: ‘‘The revolution can never be over until we have our country, until we have British imperialism where it belongs - in the dustbin of history.’’

In a rare public appearance, Mr Keenan also told a commemoration on Sunday: ‘‘Don’t be afraid of the phase we are in. This phase will either be successful or it will be over. The Good Friday Agreement will either stand, or it will fall.’’

The comments angered Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble who said the remarks contradicted those of Mr Adams three years ago, when he said violence must be a thing of the past, ‘‘over, done with, gone’’.

However, Mr Adams tonight dismissed the Northern Ireland First Minister’s criticism of Mr Keenan as ‘‘entirely contrived’’ and a ‘‘storm in a teacup’’.

‘‘Instead of expending his energies in a blame game, Mr Trimble would be better employed promoting the Good Friday Agreement,’’ the West Belfast MP retorted.

‘‘If it was not for the likes of Brian Keenan, there would not be a peace process.’’

The row flared as British and Irish Government officials continued to assess the chances of a breakthrough in the peace process which has been mired in a recent weeks in a dispute over IRA decommissioning, police reform and demilitarisation.

Mr Ahern will travel to Downing Street tomorrow to meet the Prime Minister amid expectations that round table talks involving the two governments and the pro-Good Friday Agreement parties will be held in Hillsborough, Co Down later this week.

With pessimism mounting about the prospects of a deal ahead of the General Election, an Irish Government spokeswoman said: ‘‘Following on from an intensive period of negotiations, they will take stock of the process as it is at the moment and see how best to move the process forward.

‘‘They will not be able to continue with the intensive negotiations with everyone moving into election mode. They will decide what is the best method of keeping the process alive.’’

British Government sources were tonight expecting the round table talks to go ahead.

‘‘The meeting between the Prime Minister and the Irish Prime Minister will provide them with the opportunity to assess where we are,’’ a source said.

‘‘They will no doubt discuss the round table and will focus on issues right across the board - decommissioning, policing, security normalisation and the institutions.’’

Meanwhile, one of the small pro-Good Friday Agreement parties, the Women’s Coalition, urged nationalists and republicans to build confidence in the peace process by supporting new policing arrangements or making a gesture on decommissioning.

Women’s Coalition MLA Monica McWilliams warned against trying to mothball the process if there was no prospect of movement ahead of the election.

The South Belfast MLA said: ‘‘Let’s not give up because in moments in the past we have been there where people said it was impossible to deliver and two hours later, they delivered.

"We cannot continue to send out negative messages about what people say they can’t do.

‘‘We should still live with the belief that unlike Israel and Palestine we won’t separate in a moment of crisis but we will try and deliver at the moment of crisis to bring us to the next stage.’’