Britain, Ireland Press Province to Shore Up Pact

British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Irish counterpart, Bertie Ahern, demanded immediate progress Monday to refloat Northern Ireland’s listing peace process.

The two premiers struck a determinedly upbeat tone after talks at Blair’s country residence, Chequers. But Northern Ireland Protestant leader David Trimble warned that the province’s 1998 Good Friday agreement was close to collapsing.

“It’s got to be done now. There is no point in people thinking this is going to change in August or September and October,” Blair told reporters at Chequers. “We need to settle down, get the hard work done and get the thing sorted.”

The two leaders were moving to a secluded house in the English Midlands for a two-day summit with heads of Northern Ireland’s political parties to address key disagreements over scrapping guerrilla arms, reforming the province’s police force and reducing Britain’s military presence.

They are seeking a way to make Northern Ireland’s home-rule institutions function after Trimble quit as the province’s first minister July 1 over the Irish Republican Army’s refusal to give up its weapons. As a result of his resignation, the Protestant-Roman Catholic government must call fresh elections within five weeks or suspend the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Trimble condemned Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein, the IRA’s political ally, for what he said was “his entirely cavalier attitude to the agreement.” Adams has said the arms issue must be resolved as part of a wider debate.