The Ulster Unionist Party last night pledged that it would not sit in an executive with Sinn Fein until the Provisional IRA had begun "a credible and verifiable process of decommissioning". The statement followed a three-hour meeting of the 110-member party executive.
Dissident UUP sources privately described the statement as a victory and said that Mr David Trimble now had "no room to manoeuvre" on the decommissioning issue. Before the meeting, there were bitter clashes between the party's deputy leader, Mr John Taylor, and its security spokesman, Mr Ken Maginnis.
The statement said: "Democracy cannot be underpinned by illegal arms or terrorist armies. Ulster Unionists have never deviated on this issue and we reaffirm the Assembly manifesto pledge that we will not sit in an executive with Sinn Fein until they have begun a credible and verifiable process of decommissioning leading to complete disarmament by May 2000.
"This is the democratic position. This is not an issue between Ulster Unionists and Sinn Fein. It is an issue between democrats and terrorists. In coming weeks democracy must be vindicated. Devolution must be achieved on a basis that includes all democrats but only democrats."
The position was overwhelmingly supported by the executive. The dissident UUP MP, Mr Jeffrey Donaldson, denied that the party had tied David Trimble's hands at the negotiating table. "This is about a fundamental principle. Do we have a government that's based on democracy or do we have people in that government that are wedded to guns and violence? That's the issue the people are standing on. That's where the UUP stands and we won't be moving from that," he said.
There were angry exchanges between Mr John Taylor and Mr Ken Maginnis on the way into the meeting. Mr Taylor denied his statement earlier in the week, threatening to resign as a party negotiator if the UUP retreated from its line on decommissioning, was a pre-emptive strike against Mr Trimble in a leadership contest.
"I am not interested in the leadership," he said. "I am fully behind David Trimble." His statement had been "a shot across the bows" for Mr Blair after he had appeared to signal that if Sinn Fein could not deliver Provisional IRA decommissioning, it must support the idea in principle and condemn those who failed to do so.
Mr Taylor had previously been criticised by Mr Maginnis for what he believed was his failure to fully support the UUP's European election candidate, Mr Jim Nicholson. Mr Taylor denied this and claimed that Mr Maginnis had "no room to speak" on the issue as he had been "sun-bathing in Northern Cyprus" during the campaign.
Mr Maginnis replied that while he had enjoyed a short holiday, he had returned to play an active part in the campaign while others "stabbed (Mr Nicholson) in the back, front and everywhere else".
Earlier, Mr Trimble warned Mr Blair that it would be unthinkable for the British government to soften its position on decommissioning. He denied there were any differences between himself and Mr Taylor on the arms issue.
He also urged the British government to review the Provisional IRA's ceasefire following the shooting of the informer, Mr Martin McGartland, in England. He believed the Provisionals were responsible for three killings this year.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Andrews, is to meet the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Dr Mo Mowlam, on Monday. The Department of Foreign Affairs said last night that this would start a week of intensive discussions aimed at meeting the June 30th deadline for devolving powers to the new institutions.
Mr Andrews will go to Belfast on Tuesday for further talks.