The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, are likely to be in contact by telephone later this week as British and Irish ministers struggle to shore-up the Northern Ireland peace process.
The Liaison Group of British and Irish officials is scheduled to meet before the weekend in London, but sources last night would not rule out the likelihood of a telephone conference call between Mr Ahern and Mr Blair before the Prime Minister leaves for Japan on Thursday.
Mr Blair will have further consultations later today with the Northern Ireland Secretary, Dr Mo Mowlam, after she completes her round of security discussions at Stormont with a meeting with an Ulster Unionist delegation led by Mr David Trimble.
It is understood that last night's meeting between Mr Blair and Mr Trimble at Downing Street, which lasted just over an hour, was dominated by issues central to the political process.
Mr Trimble left Number 10 without comment. However, it is understood that he pressed Mr Blair about a British government position paper - thought to contain an outline of the likely outcome of the talks process - which the Ulster Unionists had hoped to see circulated to the parties in the talks before the Christmas break.
The suggestion in UUP circles is that this paper was "put into the freezer" when it emerged that Sinn Fein would not approve a document - agreed by the the Ulster Unionists and the SDLP - identifying a Northern Ireland Assembly as one of the major issues to be addressed when the talks process resumes next week.
Downing Street described last night's meeting as "constructive".
Mr Blair told Mr Trimble and his deputy, Mr John Taylor, that he still considered the prospects for a peaceful settlement "better than for a generation". Although he always knew the process would be complex and difficult, Mr Blair said he believed the continuing goodwill of the people of Northern Ireland and of the parties in the process offered grounds for cautious optimism.
The Prime Minister emphasised to the UUP leader that he would continue to devote time and energy to this "major government priority".