The democratic leaders of this State have made "a mistake" in asking for a declaration that the war is over, according to the president of Sinn Fein, Mr Gerry Adams. "They must all know that what the IRA has done is to move itself out of the equation onto the sidelines. And that's where they should be kept," he says.
Two days before the historic referendums, Mr Adams maintains that the current situation moves the North into "a state of limbo". He refers to the "rawness" of what is happening within unionism while asserting, "There is no one more subversive than a good unionist."
In a broad-ranging interview dealing with the issues which are dominating the Northern campaign, Mr Adams was asked to outline the biggest selling point of the Agreement for the Republican movement.
He says the Sinn Fein leadership made it clear when they entered into this phase of the negotiations that a united Ireland and independence could not have been achieved by May.
He disagrees with the Taoiseach's analysis that the British are out of the equation. "Well, I don't think the British are entirely out of the equation. I think we are going into a phase where the logic - although there cannot be any certainty that logic guides British policy - of the current situation moves the North into a state of limbo. I think that state of limbo, of uncertainty, could be unsettling and very unstable."
He says he wants the British to work positively with the Irish government to bring about Irish unity in the most stable and harmonious way possible.
Having endorsed an Agreement which contains the principle of consent, what is Mr Adams's understanding of that principle?
He says that, in coming to its decision, it was very painful for many Republicans.
Consent has to be a two-way street. There was a need for nationalist and unionist consent to be given equally.
The difficulty for all of them was the reality that the unionists were only in a majority in two or 2 1/2 counties in the north-east of this island and, because they are in such large numbers in that particular area, consent has become a euphemism for a veto. Sinn Fein would continue to assert the need for unionist agreement about how to get a peace settlement.
He says it is "dishonest" of democratic leaders here, to ask the Republican movement to state that "the war is over" because it is really another way of saying "is the IRA cessation permanent?" Asked what is dishonest about it, Mr Adams responds that the question is directed at Republicans, implying that they are the only ones that were ever involved in war.
If you go into West Belfast, he says, the only furniture of war that you will see are the barracks, the troops on the ground, and the RUC patrols continuously harassing people.
"If the people in the areas which have suffered most from conflict do not see a change in their daily lives, then there will not be, and there cannot be, a proper and durable peace settlement." The biggest contribution to trying to bring about a situation where the war is over has been made by the IRA. "I have to give credit to the loyalists as well. I think the British have never stopped.
"Anyone who understands the realpolitik of this situation, must know that every day of an IRA cessation is a massive contribution to building a peace settlement.
"Those who are opposed to the IRA or those who repudiate the IRA's right to use armed actions, or those who are revulsed by what the IRA did, quite rightly say, `We are not thanking those people for stopping what they should never have done in the first place.' That's fair enough.
"They all must know that what the IRA has done is to move itself out of the equation onto the sidelines. And that's where they should be kept. There are numerous issues which have been long-fingered, put into commissions where they could be lost, and the history of British commissions is a very sad one. The unionists are still not talking to Sinn Fein."
Mr Adams's understanding of the decommissioning proposals in the Agreement is that "All of the parties should do their very best to bring about the decommissioning of weapons within the set period of two years." He says they want to see all of the guns out of Irish politics. They will continue to work for that and to bring their influence to bear wherever they can to bring that about. It is not a precondition. Q. "Do you expect to be a Minister in a Northern executive without arms being handed in?" A. "I expect that Sinn Fein representatives will, as they will be entitled through whatever mandate they receive, to be given our full rights on the basis of equality alongside every other party. The short answer to it is `Yes'. We have made it clear that we are not the IRA." Q. "I must say to you that there isn't a nationalist on the island who wouldn't see Sinn Fein and the IRA as two sides of the one coin. You only had to see the reception given to the Balcombe Street Four at your ardfheis to realise that your people saw them as their people." A. "That's a different thing. There is a difference between people saluting prisoners who, for the first time in 23 years, were out of prison cells. I myself, quite stupidly, underestimated the emotional delight that was triggered off. Sinn Fein is not the IRA. That is a matter of fact. I don't go off and get permission from men in a back room or from people in balaclavas about how we develop this party.
"We are governed by our ardchomhairle and by the ardfheis. Sinn Fein has been a party in transition for some time now. If someone thinks they can handle the IRA thing better than the Sinn Fein leadership, they are welcome to do it."
Asked if he was concerned at Mr Blair's promise to give legislative expression to the need for decommissioning, Mr Adams points out that the British Prime Minister cannot cherry pick. The British Prime Minister cannot legislate for anything other than what is in the document.
He wants to assure unionists, he says, that when he calls for an end to the British presence, unionists have as much right to be on this island as he has. He also asserts that there is no one more subversive than a good unionist.
"Watch Mr McCartney, Mr Paisley. It is their sovereign government which has signed up to this agreement. All of this is a greater challenge to Mr Blair than it is to me.
"He is the person who has responsibility for jurisdiction in this part of our country and what the unionists are doing is challenging him. They are not challenging me. I want to make it very clear that we want to deal in good faith with unionists and their leaders."