The Northern Secretary, Mr Peter Mandelson, has appealed to Northern nationalists not to "overreact" following the Ulster Unionist Party's decision to back Mr Trimble's six-point plan.
Mr Mandelson said the Belfast Agreement remained the best hope for a peaceful future in Northern Ireland and urged all parties to concentrate on moving the peace process forward in the coming weeks.
"To nationalists, I would make this appeal. Don't overreact. Don't jump to conclusions. We all have to work together to get things back on track. If you portray this as a recipe for collapse, it could well be a self-fulfilling prophecy."
He said he would meet Mr Trimble this week to discuss his proposals. "This is not a time for banging the drum but rather for mature, calm, patient work to see if we can resolve the issues between the parties."
Welcoming Mr Trimble's majority vote at the meeting on Saturday, Mr Mandelson said a victory for Mr Jeffrey Donaldson would have "directly threatened" the Belfast Agreement. The agreement would have probably collapsed eventually if Mr Donaldson had won the vote.
However, Mr Mandelson said he understood the unionist concerns which prompted Saturday's meeting. "Unionists want to know that republicans are dealing with the arms issue and living up to the commitments they have made."
He said he would hold discussions with his Irish counterpart, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, to consider how the decommissioning commission could play "a more active role".
