IRA actions awaited after war-is-over declaration

The main players in the Irish peace process have all vowed to wait for actions on the ground before passing final judgement on the IRA's declaration that its armed struggle is over.

The Irish and British governments have welcomed the statement, but say it must be followed by evidence on the ground that the IRA is no longer active.

Unionists, meanwhile, have insisted that it was merely a statement of intent and they will not be sharing power with republicans unless paramilitary and criminal activity ends and decommissioning is completed in a verifiable way.

No time-table has been set for future talks on the restoration of power-sharing, but most commentators believe moves are likely to begin in earnest next spring.

The Independent Monitoring Commission set up to oversee paramilitary activity is due to issue a report in October and another in January.

Should those reports indicate an end to IRA activity, unionists would be expected to engage with Sinn Féin in a restored power-sharing Executive.