There can be no doubt that yesterday's events were a bad way to mark the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.
Expectations of significant progress had grown steadily over recent weeks, and the publication of specific proposals drawn up by the Irish and British governments was eagerly awaited.
However, just hours before Bertie Ahern and Tony Blair were due to meet at Hillsborough, the entire initiative was abruptly postponed.
While it remains possible that key issues can yet be resolved in the short term, the credibility of the political process has become dan-gerously stretched.
The familiar claims and counter-claims have already been produced, but attention is bound to turn towards the contribution – or lack of – from the republican movement.
Behind every republican move over the last decade was the perception that, at some point, the influence of the IRA would quietly but irrevocably fade away.
That stage has now to be reached if our political structures are to realise their potential, and yesterday was supposed to be the day when republican intentions were finally clarified.
The indications are that the deal eventually on offer from republicans was so limited and conditional that it could not have provided the basis for any form of breakthrough.
Although the question of sanctions could present legitimate difficulties in some circumstances, the reality is that what senior US sources have characterised as an end to the paramilitary dimension would leave republicans with nothing to fear in this regard.
No-one would underestimate the sensitivities associated with the policing debate, but the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement dictates that what are essentially differences of opinion over timetables should readily be accom-modated.
All our main parties have a crucial role to play in the days ahead and Sinn Féin figures in particular need to display the leadership qualities they have so frequently demanded from others.
The attempts by the two governments to complete a strategy for the full implementation of the agreement are praiseworthy and deserve to be supported.
