U.S.-Bound Adams Voices Pessimism

Addressing reporters at the airport in Dublin, Ireland, Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said, as he and other politicians headed to Washington for talks concerning Northern Ireland’s future, that the province’s peace process is in deep crisis. The meeting is intended to restart the process after Britain last month suspended Northern Ireland’s home-rule institutions because of what was called a lack of progress concerning disarmament by the Irish Republican Army. British Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Mandelson said it was “absolutely imperative” that the province’s self-rule executive be restarted before a May 22 target for completing disarmament--a deadline that he said was unlikely to be met.