A significant step forward in the IRA's position on the peace process was made last night with one important sentence, writes Gerry Moriarty, Northern Editor.
It's probably too late for a quick resurrection of the peace process but there was one significant paragraph in the statement the IRA issued last night to accompany its original statement of April 13th - if that's not too confusing.
The accompanying statement was in most respects a precis of the April 13th statement from P O'Neill, which the British and Irish governments insisted did not provide clarity about the IRA's future to allow agreement on restoring devolution and pushing ahead with May Assembly elections.
Mr Gerry Adams and Mr Martin McGuinness on innumerable occasions insisted that the April statement was clear and unambiguous on the IRA's intentions, but the governments steadfastly disagreed.
That statement is at last out in the open and people can decide for themselves.
The pity is that all the accompanying word-play, which the IRA said last night it found so annoying, meant that this great opportunity for a deal has at best been put on hold to the autumn, by the earliest.
In last night's accompanying statement - the May statement, if you like - there was one important sentence.
The IRA referring to the three questions posed by the British Prime Minister Mr Blair said that "the president of Sinn Féin responded in a clear and unambiguous way" to the queries.
"His answers accurately reflected our position," added P O'Neill. "There is no lack of clarity. Our statement and the commitments contained in it was dependent on agreement involving the two governments, the UUP and Sinn Féin," he added.
By saying Mr Adams's clarifications was the IRA's position P O'Neill appeared to be addressing the missing link to these weeks and months of negotiations.
That link was how to marry what, as far as the governments and Ulster Unionists were concerned, was the unsatisfactory IRA statement of April 13th to the clarifying statements provided by Mr Adams on April 27th and April 30th.
Last night that connection could finally be made.
We reported here on Saturday that when last week's negotiations finally collapsed that that link could not be made, and was not forthcoming from republicans.
Now it appears to be available - but too late. Senior sources last night were adamant that when the talks broke down last week Sinn Féin negotiators, despite the imprecations of Dublin and London, said there would be no reference to Mr Adams's clarifications and no addendum to the IRA statement of April 13th, let alone a second accompanying statement.
Mr Adams vehemently disputed this account in a letter to yesterday's Irish Times but well-placed insiders confirmed and re-confirmed to The Irish Times that our account was correct.
"This is the first time that the IRA has taken ownership of Gerry Adams's three clarifications," said one source last night.
The link is now present but such is the political confusion, stalemate and despondency that it will hardly speedily thrust us forward into some new deal.
It's worth reflecting on how we ended in this mess.
Mr Blair posed three questions to the IRA on April 23rd which in synopsis were:
1. Is the IRA ending all activities including "targeting, procurement of weapons, so-called punishment beatings and so forth?"
2. Is the IRA committed to putting all arms beyond use?
3. If all elements of the Belfast Agreement are implemented "does that mean the complete and final closure of the conflict?"
On April 27th, Mr Adams answered questions 2 and 3 to the satisfaction of the governments. In a statement in Parliament Building, Stormont, he answered the second question thus: "The IRA has clearly stated its willingness to proceed with the implementation of a process to put arms beyond use at the earliest opportunity. Obviously this is not about putting some arms beyond use. It is about all arms."
He answered the third question thus: "If the two governments and all the parties fulfil their commitments, this will provide the basis for the complete and final closure of the conflict." That satisfied the Taoiseach and Prime Minister.
On question 1 about activities, Mr Adams said on April 30th, "The IRA leadership has stated its determination to ensure that its activities will be consistent with its resolve to see the complete and final closure of the conflict. The IRA statement is a statement of completely peaceful intent. Its logic is that there should be no activities inconsistent with this."
Within inches of the finishing tape but not quite over the line, according to the two leaders.
This prompted the semantic to-ing and fro-ing last week between republican negotiators and the governments. And all this as the Assembly elections were beginning to roll in typical rambunctious, ugly Northern fashion. Hardly propitious.
Politics remained stuck in a rut last night.
The British government says it is also sickened by all the word games, and largely portrays the statements as academic because the political atmosphere is so poisoned and because the IRA still refuses to say it will end specific activities such as targeting, "punishments", exiling, etc.
Last night and the continuing couple of days will be about a post- mortem on the IRA statement.
The ambition of the Taoiseach and Prime Minister, ever willing to travel hopefully, is that it won't also be about the post-mortem on the Belfast Agreement.