Sinn Féin president Mr Gerry Adams claimed today the raid on Castlereagh police station was an attempt by British military and intelligence organisations to frustrate political progress.
"I think you have seen it in terms of the way the Ombudsman inquiry was frustrated by Special Branch, seen it across a range of issues on demilitarisation and policing and I think you have also seen it in terms of the recent raid on Castlereagh," he said.
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Mr Adams
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"We are trying to get the British government to focus on the need for these people to be brought to heel," Mr Adams said ahead of a meeting with British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair in Downing Street.
Mr Adams, accompanied by Mr Martin McGuinness, sought to find out from the British prime minister what was taken in the raid and whether it endangers any republicans or informers.
Emerging from the hour-long meeting, Mr Adams said that the events at Castlereagh "vindicated" his party's claims that anti-agreement elements within the British military and intelligence systems were frustrating the peace process.
"I can't give you any more than a speculative guess, but to quote the remarks of Ronnie Flanagan, it clearly was an inside job," he said.
The talks come after Northern Ireland police chief Sir Ronnie Flanagan strongly hinted he believed the break-in a week ago was done by rogue intelligence officers.
He said he would be "most surprised" if paramilitaries or civilians were responsible, and said he considered it "impossible" the robbery had been given official sanction by any military or intelligence agency.