The Taoiseach has described the decommissioning of IRA weapons as a "landmark development" in the peace process.
Bertie Ahern
Speaking at a press conference in Dublin, Bertie Ahern said today's announcement by the De Chastelain decommissioning body that the IRA had disposed of all of its arms was of "real historic significance".
Mr Ahern told reporters: "The gun of the IRA has been taken out of Irish politics".
He said: "The weapons of the IRA are gone. And they are gone in a manner which has been witnessed and verified."
But the Taoiseach said "this doesn't end the peace process, it is a phase."
Mr Ahern said the next phase was to try to implement the Belfast Agreement and set up a working Assembly and North-South bodies.
He said this could be done in the "months ahead".
Flanked by the Minister for Justice Michael McDowell and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern, he said he understood the fears and uncertainties of the unionist community.
"I understand that trust needs to be rebuilt. I know they need time to reflect. But I urge them not to under-estimate the importance of today's developments."
He said he hoped the next Independent Monitoring Commission report in October would "confirm that IRA paramilitary and criminal activity has ended".
"Many people have suffered at the hands of these (IRA) weapons, the suffering should never have happened," he said.
"If today's developments mean anything, they mean that no future generations would suffer this pain and loss.
"We cannot forget our sad and tragic past, we cannot undo damage done but we must now also look forward with renewed hope and promise, particularly we must look to the day when loyalist weapons are removed from the equation.
Mr Ahern said: "I've given ten years of my life to this . . . so I'm very pleased with today".
Mr McDowell said today is an historic day because the provisional movement has informally undertaken to an international body - which they engaged with - that all of their arms in their possession have been put permanently beyond use.
He said he would take that on "as a working assumption until somebody prove the contrary".
