Blair meets Trimble today

Tony Blair is meeting Northern Ireland First Minister David Trimble in Downing Street today, 24 hours before Mr Blair flies to Belfast in a bid to avert another full-blown political crisis in Northern Ireland.

Mr Trimble is expected to put fresh pressure on Mr Blair to take decisive action over what unionists claim are continuing IRA breaches of their ceasefire.

The discussions come the day before Mr Blair and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern host talks with all the pro-Good Friday Agreement parties at Hillsborough Castle, Co Down, on Thursday to try to patch up a deal to prevent the political collapse at Stormont as street violence continues to heighten tensions.

Mr Trimble wants an early word with Mr Blair ahead of the Hillsborough discussions to express a party belief that senior republicans have been orchestrating recent violence in Belfast.

Mr Trimble said ahead of the meeting: ‘‘As I have said repeatedly the Northern Ireland that we live in is not the Northern Ireland that we want.

‘‘We committed ourselves to an agreement which we believed would see an end to lawlessness.

‘‘Our commitment is still there - but what of the republican movement? The evidence points the other way.’’

His party delegation would be asking Mr Blair to deal with the problem ‘‘and we will be insisting there should be no tolerable level of violence in this country’’.

The meeting came after Northern Ireland Secretary of State John Reid held unprecedented talks with Ulster’s most notorious loyalist paramilitary leader last night in a bid to the halt sectarian street violence.

Dr Reid urged Ulster Defence Association chief Johnny Adair and other loyalist bosses to call off the mobs involved in rioting which has engulfed Belfast.

Spelling out his message to them, Dr Reid said: ‘‘If you want to work for a constructive, political resolution to our problems and a better Northern Ireland I will work with you.

‘‘If you are wedded to violent ways and you are stuck to a path of violence I will oppose you by every means at my disposal.’’

The two-and-a-half hours of negotiations with members of the Loyalist Commission, an umbrella group consisting of paramilitaries, unionist politicians and church leaders, came as tensions across Northern Ireland remain dangerously high.

Afterwards, the Northern Ireland Secretary refused to discuss Adair’s contribution, but admitted it was his first chance to hear the views of paramilitaries on the commission.

The talks, he said, had been ‘‘frank and useful’’. Although he stressed no agreement was reached,

Dr Reid said: ‘‘They have a major contribution to make to the reduction of violence in Belfast.’’

As all sides stepped up efforts to ensure the volatile loyalist marching season does not erupt into fresh violence, Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams denied republicans were engaged in a strategy of creating agitation.

He said: ‘‘It drives nationalists and republicans crazy to believe that someone would think there’s a strategy in place which could bring down the Good Friday Agreement.

‘‘Many unionists believe that’s the case. That’s the sentiment in unionism which is being wound up by anti-agreement elements.’’

The west Belfast MP also insisted all disturbances should stop immediately.

‘‘Communities should not have to endure the nightly trauma that they have been going through,’’ he added.