Detectives from An Garda Siochana and the Police Service of Northern Ireland said today that they would follow their investigation of an alleged multi-million euro IRA money laundering operation into Europe if that was where it leads.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern has also warned the peace process was being strangled amid allegations of a massive republican crime machine, Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy revealed his officers were ready to go international on the trail of the money laundering operation.
Police on either side of the border have refused to confirm if any of the near £3 million sterling seized during raids in Dublin and Cork last week was part of the record haul stolen during the Northern Bank heist in Belfast.
Mr Conroy said scientific examinations of the notes was about to begin in order to confirm his suspicions. But as his force prepared itself for an investigation that will take months and lead it into the heart of Ireland's financial and business sectors, the Garda chief disclosed how far he was prepared to go.
He said: "Prior to the recovery of the monies we have recovered in recent weeks we did conduct investigations which led us in certain directions. "It's a bit too early at this stage to go into details on that, but we will be following up in relation to matters overseas."
The two forces have also signed a ground-breaking agreement clearing the way for gardaí to serve in Northern Ireland.
Under the agreement officers from Northern Ireland can be seconded to the Republic. Garda Commissioner Conroy and the PSNI Chief Constable Hugh Orde signed the unique joint protocols - which allow personnel exchanges and secondments between the forces.
The signing, at Hillsborough Castle in Co Down, was attended by the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, and Northern Secretary Paul Murphy.
The agreement comes at a time of unprecedented co-operation between the two forces.
The idea for exchanges and secondments was first recommended in the Patten Report on the future of policing in Northern Ireland drawn up by former Hong Kong Governor Chris Patten in 1999.
The governments carried forward the idea in an inter-governmental agreement on policing which they signed in 2002.