Sinn Féin and the DUP have differed sharply on the legacy of Operation Banner, the British army deployment in Northern Ireland since 1969, which ends at midnight tonight.
Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson, himself a former UDR member, said those who had served in Northern Ireland could be proud of their achievements.
"[ They] can be proud of their role in defeating terrorism and in restoring normality to our streets," he said.
However, Sinn Féin junior minister Gerry Kelly, a former IRA member, claimed British soldiers were an "oppressive presence" and had used intelligence and covert operations against the Catholic community.
Mr Donaldson paid tribute to the more than 300,000 members of British armed forces who had been deployed in Northern Ireland over the 38 years of Operation Banner and he credited them with a successful defence of democracy.
Referring to the 763 members of the forces who were killed, he said: "This is a difficult time for the families of those who were killed. This was an immense sacrifice and we owe a great debt to those who laid down their life in defence of democracy." Turning to locally recruited and part-time members of the forces, Mr Donaldson said: "Many UDR and latterly RIR soldiers were killed as they sat alongside their family, worked in their local community or while they returned home from duty. Undoubtedly those soldiers who served amongst their community, especially along the Border, faced scenes and hardships which were never printed and we'll never read of."
Mr Kelly said working class Catholics had been subjected to army intelligence gathering tactics. "I remember around 1972, when I was going about, nearly every working class Catholic's house was on computer," he said.
"I was on the run at the time and if I gave a name they would ask me what colour the wallpaper was in that household because they had it on file. They used to walk into houses at night and count everyone there, from babies up, to keep check." He described such operations as "real Big Brother stuff". "We have had British troops and other crown forces on the ground now into a second generation, and it was an oppressive presence. . .
"Before they had intelligence, internment was being used as a weapon against nationalists and Catholic people. But when you look back at it now it was the simple repetition of tactics that were used by the British army in every single arena in the world they went into as a colonial power."
Such actions helped recruitment into the IRA, he claimed.
Turning to the end of formal military operations in Northern Ireland, Mr Kelly sounded upbeat. "A lot of people are glad to see this day happen, and it will only help to generate inter-community dialogue."
The British army will station some 5,000 personnel in Northern Ireland ready for deployment anywhere in the world. "Normalisation" or demilitarisation plans are continuing and only about 10 army bases will be retained out of more than 100.