An opportunity now exists for a democratic settlement to the conflict in Northern Ireland. It should be grasped enthusiastically by democrats. The parties in the talks should concentrate on what is attainable. It is time for political leaders to state in public what they accept in private.
Already both Ray Burke and his successor, David Andrews, have publicly stated the realistic position regarding a united Ireland. Unionists know that, notwithstanding Articles 2 and 3, there is little desire among the people of the Republic to absorb Northern Ireland. They also know that there can be no return to crude majoritarianism and the old Stormont.
An agreement reached between the parties in Northern Ireland and ratified by the British and Irish governments and British parliament should leave no room for the concept of "unfinished business".
This concept, among other things, led to a bitter civil war in the south and to decades of political stagnation in the Irish State. It perpetuated a siege mentality in unionism and deepened the sectarianism which led to the denial of basic civil rights to nationalists.
Nations and states rarely coincide and all attempts to make them coincide have led to disaster. Respect for the differing national allegiances of the people of Northern Ireland and a determination to include them on the basis of equality within that state are the beginning of the reduction of these allegiances as determinants of political outcomes.
The starting point of any settlement must be the acceptance that the fundamental source of division in Northern Ireland is not religion or race or ethnicity. At the heart of the instability is the conflict of national allegiances.
Equal respect for, and recognition of, these opposing national allegiances are the first steps towards resolving the conflict. In this regard, the British and Irish governments must set the example.
It is generally accepted that there can be no change in the constitutional position of Northern Ireland without the freely-given consent of the people there. However, new political structures are required that can command the allegiance of all the people of Northern Ireland.
Nationalists must be assured that their individual and communal aspirations and identity will be recognised, valued and respected by the state in Northern Ireland and by the British state. But parity of esteem is not enough.
For lasting stability, changes are also needed in the British constitution, if genuine equality is to be achieved within the British state for the British and Irish people who live in Northern Ireland.
The prospects for a durable settlement in Northern Ireland have been enhanced by constitutional change in the United Kingdom. The constitutional changes required in a modern multi-cultural, post-imperial Britain create opportunities to secure the settlement of the conflict in Northern Ireland.
The process has already started with the passage of the devolution referendums in Scotland and Wales, which puts devolution in Northern Ireland in the context of general constitutional reform.
More will be required: the abolition of the oath of allegiance in Westminster, the removal of religious qualifications for the highest position in the state and a bill of rights, to name a few.
The weakest section of the Framework Document is the section on East-West relations. Yet it is at least as important as the North-South dimension and crossBorder bodies.
But there are two sets of EastWest relationships; that between the British and Irish states, and that between Northern Ireland - with its two communities - and London. It is not up to politicians from the South to order this latter relationship.
It WILL be up to both communities and Westminster to remake the relationship based on respect, inclusion and genuine equality.
The people of both communities must have democratic ownership of decisions which will continue to be made on their behalf in Westminster. People in Derry, Larne, Newry or Newtown
ards must believe that they are connected in an affirming democratic manner with institutions in London just like people in postdevolution Glasgow or Cardiff.
This may seem unimaginable at present but it must happen in order to secure the long-term stability of the settlement in Northern Ireland, between North and South and between Britain and Ireland.
There is an urgent need to put flesh on the concept of "the totality of relationships" between the British and Irish states. Culturally and historically we have more in common with each other than we have with other states. Our peoples have intermingled for centuries.
As such we have shared interests which we should pursue jointly as partners in Europe. The Northern Ireland assembly should be represented on the Anglo-Irish Inter-Parliamentary Body as should the new Scottish and Welsh assemblies.
A new East-West Inter-Governmental Body should be created with powers to manage issues that could best be managed at that level.
Fishing policy is one such, as are transport, communications and energy. Unionists should accept that Northern Ireland nationalists will not give their consent to a new dispensation that does not include a North-South body.
The body, as envisaged, is not a Trojan Horse for joint sovereignty no more than an East-West body would signal the reintegration of the Irish Republic into the United Kingdom. Both should be seen in terms of their practical value.
There are, of course, fears that must be addressed. The vast quantity of arms and explosives in the hands of paramilitary organisations is a cause of widespread fear and constitutes a potentially lethal veto on political agreement.
Decommissioning would be a vote of confidence in the political process, a clear signal of intent to employ the craft of politics to achieve political objectives, and an indication of a willingness to accept the will of the people as expressed through the ballot box.
And, in tandem with the voluntary surrender of legally-held weapons, it would go a long way to build trust in a society that desperately needs it.
Trust will be copperfastened by new political structures that enable nationalists and unionists to share ownership of Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland has suffered a huge democratic deficit during the years of direct rule, whereby politics lost out to nonelected quangos and a remote Westminster bureaucracy.
A local devolved assembly, elected by PR, would be a forum for all political expressions. Inclusiveness should be the hallmark of new political structures in Northern Ireland.
It should be remembered that one-party rule and a de-facto policy of exclusion created the conditions for an alienated and embittered minority.
The concept of "unfinished business" should not be allowed to cast a shadow over the current talks. It creates unrealistic expectations on one side and real fears on the other, while leaving the middle ground marooned in limbo.
Yes, despite the extreme polarisation of recent decades there is a middle ground - or Third Strand. It has yet to realise its full political potential. Even so, it has a role to play in reaching a settlement and will have an even greater role once a settlement has been reached.
Given the right conditions, it can be the catalyst for a new politics in Northern Ireland.