CLINTON VISIT STILL GIVES HOPE OF NI DEAL

There is continuing speculation that President Clinton's visit this week could break the political impasse in Northern Ireland, despite British and Irish attempts to play down expectations. Suggesting that a deal was unlikely this week, one British source said of the Clinton visit: "It is about pushing things further forward. As always, it's the sequencing that's the problem. But the President's imminent arrival has increased the tempo, and it reminds people of the big picture." However, some insiders clearly remain hopeful that President Clinton's presence in Belfast could provide the stimulus for enough sequencing to secure the IRA's re-engagement with the International Decommissioning Commission and the lifting of Mr David Trimble's ban on Sinn Fйin participation in meetings of the North-South Ministerial Council. There were also suggestions last night that Gen John De Chastelain, chairman of the International Commission, might be about to make another statement, as British and Irish officials continued their negotiations behind the scenes. And the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, is expected to resume discussions with party leaders in London in preparation for his arrival in Belfast on Wednesday. As The Irish Times reported last week, some senior British figures have been pressing for a concrete act of IRA decommissioning. Their favoured approach would see the republicans agree literally to concrete-over weapons dumps previously seen by the International Inspectors, so putting those weapons permanently beyond use, in line with the IRA commitment of last May.