The Liberal Democrats' Commons spokesman on Northern Ireland, Mr Lembit Opik, has said his meeting last night in Belfast with Sinn Fein would not have been possible without an IRA ceasefire.
Mr Opik, who was born and reared in Northern Ireland although his parents are Estonian, met a Sinn Fein delegation led by the party's chairman, Mr Mitchel McLaughlin. The MP said afterwards: "I am certain that the greatest chance of a breakthrough is with all the parties at the table." His message for the Northern Secretary, Dr Mowlam, was: "As long as the groupings have confidence that they really are being included in a meaningful way, then there's a good chance of progress."
Mr Opik also met members of the Ulster Unionist Party, the SDLP, the Alliance Party, the Progressive Unionist Party and the Ulster Democratic Party. He will return to the North especially to meet the Democratic Unionists.
He expressed cautious optimism at the end of his two-day visit. "My feeling is that all the people I have met are looking for a way forward." He intended to visit the North at least monthly from now on.
There was also a meeting between representatives of Sinn Fein and the Irish Republican Socialist Party in Belfast yesterday. A Sinn Fein statement said the purpose of the meeting was to "discuss the current political situation and the peace process".
Mr Mitchel McLaughlin said: "Sinn Fein is committed to dialogue and we are guided in our engagements with other political parties by our peace strategy."
The IRSP spokesman, Mr Kevin McQuillan, said the meeting had been positive and constructive. "Dialogue between republicans and republican socialists on the way forward is to be welcomed and encouraged," he added.