Sinn Fein MLA Mr Gerry Kelly has said decommissioning is now "unlikely to be achieved through the de Chastelain mechanism".
Writing in today's Irish Times, he said a new and imaginative approach was needed on the arms issue, which could be dealt with only in the context of the full implementation of the Belfast Agreement.
Mr Gerry Adams has denied his party is trying to avoid its obligation to achieve Provisional IRA decommissioning. The Sinn Fein president had said the May 22nd deadline for disarmament no longer applied.
The SDLP deputy leader, Mr Seamus Mallon, queried Mr Adams's motives for disregarding the deadline. He said he was effectively attempting to absolve "himself and his organisation" from dealing with the arms issue. Mr Adams yesterday said: "We are not seeking to distance ourselves from this issue. My responsibilities are exactly no more or no less than Seamus Mallon's."
The Alliance party accused Mr Adams of hypocrisy for saying the May deadline no longer applied, saying this conflicted with his regular demands that the Belfast Agreement be fully implemented.
The Sinn Fein president yesterday also called for the executive to be reinstated. Mr Adams was speaking as he set off for the US for St Patrick's Day celebrations and political talks. In a statement, Ms Bernadette Sands McKevitt of the 32-County Sovereignty Movement said no more "ridiculous attempts" should be made by politicians "to shore up what is in fact another failed strategy".
If President Clinton was seriously interested in peace in the North, he would ensure republicans were given visas to travel to the US, she said. Several leading members of the 32-County Sovereignty Movement and Republican Sinn Fein have been denied visas.