Republicans and nationalists were unhappy with policing and security reform while unionists were increasingly convinced that republicans would always keep the gun ready in the closet.

Sinn Fein said that the removal of all guns from Ireland (including British guns) would follow if the "causes of the conflict" were removed.

However, this remained far too ambiguous for many unionists and the institutions again headed for the buffers. When the decommissioning body revealed that the IRA had offered to dispose of arms in a way that satisfied its requirements, Sinn Fein hailed it as historic.

It did not prove enough for unionists and the subsequent Assembly suspension prompted the IRA to withdraw the offer. Then, all of a sudden in October, there was movement.

Mr Adams's declaration that he and Martin McGuinness had urged the IRA to make a "groundbreaking move" came in the wake of the September 11 terrorist strikes in America.

Following the September 11 attacks, Sinn Fein sought to underline that modern republicanism was truly committed to peaceful means, arguing that IRA guns were silent while loyalists had broken ceasefires.

Then, the day after Gerry Adams called on the IRA to make a "ground-breaking move", it did just that - and began a process of disposing of arms.

No details were made public but the IRA underlined that this was not only its contribution to saving the peace process but a gesture to persuade others of its genuine intentions. Would it prove enough?