Dublin reactionThe Opposition will seek a full briefing from the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, in the Dáil today, following the last-minute collapse of a deal between Sinn Féin and the Ulster Unionists.
Still puzzled by the outcome, Fine Gael leader Mr Enda Kenny, speaking shortly after Mr Ahern and British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair conceded that problems existed, said: "The suspension of the agreed sequence of statements is disappointing and worrying.
"What began as a day full of promise for the people of Northern Ireland is now clouded in uncertainty. The political process in NI can only be truly sustainable when there is a high degree of trust between the parties."
The difficulties encountered yesterday afternoon suggested that "the trust between the Republican movement and the Ulster Unionist Party continues to be fragile", said Mr Kenny.
He was one of the first politicians to issue a statement yesterday welcoming the apparent deal, just minutes after the Sinn Féin president Mr Gerry Adams spoke in Belfast.
Last night, however, Mr Kenny said: "It is incumbent on both governments to ensure that whatever agreements or understandings were reached between the parties in recent weeks are honoured in full. It is crucially important this is achieved quickly so that a political vacuum is not allowed to develop," he said.
Mr Kenny will visit the North next week for a series of meetings.
"I appeal to all involved in the process to renew their efforts at reaching a conclusion to the agreed sequencing rather than engaging in any recrimination which could damage trust even further," he said.
Later, he told The Irish Times that there had been "little evidence" during a meeting with Mr Ahern 10 days ago that IRA volunteers knew that "the war was over".
"Events in the last few days have moved on. Obviously, David Trimble and Gerry Adams came to an agreement about the level of transparency that would be used to deal with the arms move.
"Somebody has reneged upon this agreement. I presume that Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern would have been aware of the agreement that was made. They should now certainly ascertain what happened," he said.
Labour Party leader Mr Rabbitte said "every effort must be made, in the interests of all the people of this island, to resolve the apparent difficulties that have arisen".
However, he made it clear that the first responsibility lay with Sinn Féin and the IRA to clarify details about the amount of arms destroyed in front of the International Independent Commission on Decommissioning (IICD).
"This process has been aptly described as one that involves both words and deeds. It appears that the words have been regarded as encouraging and positive on all sides... The onus is clearly on the republican movement to make the necessary gesture to allow the IICD to report with full clarity.
"There is now a fundamental problem surrounding the transparency of the deeds," said Mr Rabbitte, who was reluctant to be more vocal until matters are clarified.
The detail of the statements to be made by all parties yesterday, including General de Chastelain, should have been cleared by everybody in advance, said one figure.
