The chances of success of the Mitchell review are slim, Sinn Fein's senior negotiator, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin, said last night. Speaking as he was leaving the talks at Stormont shortly before 11 p.m. Mr McLaughlin said his party was concerned about the difficulties that remained and was focusing on closing the gap.
He said Senator George Mitchell, who is facilitating the review of the implementation of the Belfast Agreement, did not put specific positions before the parties yesterday.
"He has certainly explored different ideas over a period of time and we and the other parties have responded with ideas of our own. But there is no concluding document, no recommendations, no final report at this stage," he said.
Mr McLaughlin said recent speculation about IRA decommissioning was "inaccurate and distracting" at a particularly important time.
"I think people just need to stay focused and rely on the integrity of ourselves. We will certainly make our position clear when we are in a position to deal with these issues. But the amount of time that we had to devote today to stop people chasing shadows was a distraction from the important work that we are doing."
Asked how he would define the chances of success of the review, Mr McLaughlin said: "We are still at the point where we would describe the chances of pulling this off as slim."
Asked about media reports of imminent disarmament, the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, said: "I've seen some of the rumours that have been in the press over the weekend and I would say to people just to be cautious about this.
"Obviously, we would be delighted if it was true and the republican movement was going to decide to face up to its responsibilities under the agreement."