February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Downing Street Declaration, December 1993
Taoiseach Albert Reynolds and British Prime Minister John Major issued a joint statement recognizing that the ending of divisions in Ireland could only come about through agreement and cooperation among all the Irish people, North and South. Major also stated that Britain has “no selfish strategic or economic interest in Northern Ireland.”
IRA ceasefire, August 1994
The IRA announced a ceasefire in its activities. Protestant paramilitaries followed suit in October.
Joint Framework documents, February 1995
The documents outlined plans for a settlement that included a devolved assembly and cross-border bodies. The Irish government said it would introduce and support proposals for rewriting Articles Two and Three of the Irish Constitution, which claimed jurisdiction over Northern Ireland. The revisions would embody the principle of consent.
Mitchell Commission report on decommissioning, January 1996
The report urged that the surrender and/or destruction of paramilitary arsenals should take place in parallel with all-party talks, rather than being made into a precondition for Sinn F