A turbulent encounter between the pro-and anti-Belfast Agreement wings of Ulster Unionism seems inevitable tomorrow after Mr David Trimble launched a withering onslaught on the policies of Mr Jeffrey Donaldson and the No wing of the party.
Mr Trimble set the scene for a combative meeting of the Ulster Unionist Council tomorrow when he dismissed as "Jeffrey's letter to Santa" a motion from Mr Donaldson and anti-agreement colleagues setting an end-of-November deadline for a start to IRA decommissioning.
His comments were viewed as a "back-me-or-sack-me" challenge to the 860 council members who must decide whether to side with Mr Trimble or the anti-agreement section of unionism led by Mr Donaldson.
The First Minister's decision to go on the attack caught both wings of the party by surprise. He delivered his broadside as two pro-agreement Assembly members, Mr Danny Kennedy and Mr Fred Cobain, with Mr Trimble's agreement, were in discussions with Mr Donaldson seeking to establish if a compromise motion could be agreed at tomorrow's council meeting.
There was bitter recrimination that Mr Trimble had made his move even as his Assembly colleagues continued negotiations with Mr Donaldson.
The Irish Times understands the trio had "narrowed the differences" and concluded their meeting before 6 p.m. with an agreement that Mr Donaldson and Mr Trimble should meet later this morning.
However, as Mr Cobain and Mr Kennedy travelled to Stormont to put this proposition to Mr Trimble, they heard reports of a press conference at which Mr Trimble denounced Mr Donaldson's "Christmas wishlist" and dismissed the idea of a specific deadline for IRA decommissioning as "counter-productive".
British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair also visited Belfast yesterday to assert that there was no viable alternative to the Belfast Agreement. Mr Trimble is understood to have agonised most of yesterday over whether he should agree a compromise motion but following his meeting with Mr Blair at Stormont he decided to confront Mr Donaldson's challenge.
The crucial issue preventing agreement was Mr Donaldson's insistence that there must be a deadline for decommissioning, even though there were some indications he was prepared to move his date for movement on arms from November to January.
Mr Trimble said the problem with deadlines was that they were counter-productive as they would be interpreted as unionists "walking away".
Mr Trimble, with his close aides, has devised a set of sanctions, falling short of a deadline, to be implemented in a phased basis should there be no further IRA movement on arms.
Mr Donaldson defended his motion, saying it was designed to restore "integrity" to the party and to exert maximum "leverage" on the IRA to start handing over arms. On BBC last night he deplored the "negativity of Mr Trimble's remarks".
It is still unclear which way the council will vote tomorrow. Mr Trimble's position was somewhat improved last night after it was confirmed that re-inspection of arms by the independent inspectors Mr Cyril Ramaphosa and Mr Martti Ahtisaari has actually taken place.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, welcoming the de Chastelain Commission report, highlighted the positive aspects of the IRA's latest gesture.
Although Gen de Chastelain said he could report no progress on actual decommissioning, Mr Ahern said the international inspectors had confirmed that the IRA dumps they have re-inspected remain secure.
