THE unilateral UVF action at Dublin Airport is continuing to cause strains in the loyalist paramilitary alliance.
Since the weekend's hoax bomb disruption of Dublin Airport, senior Progressive Unionist Party figures have been meeting elements of the UVF leadership to try and persuade them to draw back from further violence.
Meanwhile, UDA prisoners were yesterday "deeply annoyed" that the UVF staged the bomb alerts without getting the approval of the loyalist paramilitary umbrella group, the CLMC.
"I imagine that the UFF (UDA) will be asking deeply searching questions about the position of the UVF, because obviously their action is a breach of the CLMC's standing rules," said an Ulster Democratic Party member, Mr John White the UDA prisoners' representative.
The UDA prisoners pledged 100 per cent support" for the continuation of the loyalist ceasefire, according to the UDP leader, Mr Gary McMichael. "They were deeply annoyed that the UVF decided to rock the boat," he added.
"The prisoners said we must not fall at the last hurdle before negotiations. They want the ceasefire to continue, and they want us to continue to put pressure on the IRA to reinstate its ceasefire," said Mr McMichael.
"They don't want the ludicrous position to be created where, if the IRA called a ceasefire, Sinn Fein would be in talks but the loyalist parties would be excluded because of a loyalist breach of the ceasefire," he added.
"We are certainly advocating that the UVF come back on board the ceasefire, and that they don't fragment loyalism," said Mr McMichael.
The PUP has denied claims by some UDA sources that the Dublin Airport hoax bomb alert was a "solo run" by a maverick mid Ulster UVF element. The UDA alleged that the central UVF leadership was not given prior notification about the airport action.
The action was causing stress within the CLMC, the UDA admitted. It believes that current tensions are due to a failure of the UVF to control "internal undisciplined elements". The CLMC has yet to meet to decide a response to the UVF action, according to the UDA.
The PUP yesterday insisted that the central loyalist leadership authorised the Dublin Airport alert. PUP sources said it was currently meeting the UVF leadership in an attempt to persuade it to pull back from further violence.
"We are actively working to sell them our political analysis," said a leading PUP figure. He predicted it might take "up to 10 days" to get the UVF leadership back on board the ceasefire. He could not say if further UVF action might take place during that period.
Meanwhile, the Northern Ireland Office, commenting on the hoax bomb, said it condemned all such actions. The way forward was through all party negotiations, not through threats or violent actions of any kind, it said.
