The British and Irish governments will this week attempt to push forward with a new two-pronged initiative to pave the way towards the full reactivation of the institutions of the Belfast Agreement.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, and the Northern Secretary, Mr Paul Murphy, will chair multi-party talks at Parliament Buildings, Stormont, on Thursday. In tandem with the talks the British government is due to publish details of reforms to the policing legislation either at the end of this week or early next week, according to a London source.
Unionists have threatened to withdraw from the Policing Board should the proposals allow former IRA members and other former paramilitaries to join the District Policing Partnerships (DPPs), which at local level hold the Police Service of Northern Ireland to account.
The British government nonetheless is planning to proceed with a conditional clause to its policing proposals that if Sinn Féin joins the Policing Board it would allow former convicted paramilitaries to join the DPPs, well-placed sources told The Irish Times.
It is an issue of huge controversy and sensitivity for unionists but so far the British and Irish governments are convinced it is a risk worth taking. They believe that were Sinn Féin to join the Policing Board, it would be the clearest signal yet that "the IRA's war is over".
Dublin and London are not expecting any major breakthrough from Thursday's talks, which the DUP is boycotting.
However, they hope that if politicians such as Mr Gerry Adams and Mr David Trimble were prepared to thrash out their differences face to face, there could be some easing of the mutual distrust between the Ulster Unionist Party and Sinn Féin in particular.
The main concentration still rested on whether the IRA was prepared to signal that it would respond positively to the appeal from the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, for the organisation to fade from the political equation, said a London source.
Sinn Féin is continuing to argue that any prospects of such movement depend on the full implementation of all remaining aspects of the Belfast Agreement.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland Office junior minister Mr Des Browne announced at the weekend a new initiative aimed at tackling sectarianism at interface areas.
He told the annual conference of the Women's Coalition that he was establishing a community action group to try to improve community relations, particularly in flashpoint areas.
The group will involve key government departments working with the police, the Housing Executive, the Community Relations Council and other bodies and individuals.
"We want to support and build on the efforts being made to grip those issues that have a practical impact on the daily lives of everyone living at interfaces in Belfast and elsewhere," Mr Browne said.
"To play our part requires a co-ordinated approach across government, together with other key players from within the statutory sector and beyond and that is what this action group will provide."
Mr Browne said one of the group's first tasks would be "tackling the proliferation of flags, emblems and graffiti that disfigure so many areas".
The SDLP leader, Mr Mark Durkan, said the new initiative must have real power to tackle sectarianism. "If we are to build a peace of the people in a shared society, we must have a much more vigorous approach on sectarian flags and graffiti," he said.
"That is why this initiative will only be useful if it has teeth and is driven by 100 per cent political commitment," added Mr Durkan.
