The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen has said that he is looking forward to new Northern Ireland Assembly elections going ahead on schedule in May.
The Minister was speaking following discussions in Dublin with the Northern Ireland Secretary, Mr Paul Murphy.
Today's meeting comes ahead of further talks involving both the parties and the governments over the next week, and ahead of talks between the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, in Hillsborough, Co Down, on Monday week.
"Obviously we want to make sure these elections are held as scheduled and the work we are involved in is to ensure the institutions are up and running well in time for those elections, so that the pro-agreement parties can go to the people with confidence," Mr Cowen stated.
"We recognise that there are long-outstanding issues that we are trying to resolve satisfactorily for everybody for the full implementation of the agreement.
"Both governments are committed to intensively working towards that," he added.
The two ministers met as part of an on-going sequence of exchanges between the two governments about efforts to kick-start the peace process.
Mr Murphy conceded that there were "very big issues and difficulties" to deal with.
"But there always are," he added, "and in terms of what we have had to overcome over the last number of years, I believe the will is there amongst all the pro-agreement parties and politicians in Northern Ireland.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs also held a meeting in Dublin with Sinn Fein's Mr Martin McGuinness and Mr Gerry Kelly.
Afterwards, Mr McGuinness said the agenda for the exchanges had included policing in Northern Ireland and the need to put an acceptable criminal justice system into place.
He underscored his concern about the refusal of the Ulster Unionists to get involved in discussions, commenting: "It appears to me they don't want a deal at this time."
"Let the world see the obstruction is coming from those people who have refused to embrace equality and the type of change the Good Friday agreement promised," he said.
In a separate comment on the peace process position, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, sounded a cautious note. He said he hoped to achieve progress in the two meetings he was having over the next two weeks with Mr Blair.
"Whether it is enough time to make substantive progress, I am not sure. But we are certainly going to try to do as much as we can," he stated.