N. IRELAND: BELFAST: MULTI PARTY PEACE TALKS LATEST SITUATION

(9 Apr 1998) English/Nat The British and Irish premiers battled to secure the agreement of all parties present at talks to decide Northern Ireland's future on Wednesday, as negotiations hit a major hurdle. Speaking in Belfast, Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary said differences between the major Unionist and Republican parties remain profound, but were narrowing by the hour. Achieving Thursday's deadline for agreement seemed less likely after the province's largest Unionist party rejected a proposed deal in the strongest possible terms. The two leaders at the centre of the battle to secure an agreement at talks to decide Northern Ireland's future barely acknowledged each other when they briefly came face to face on Wednesday. There are still profound differences between David Trimble's Ulster Unionists - the major Unionist party - and Gerry Adams' I-R-A-allied Sinn Fein. Adams said Sinn Fein wanted an agreement but would not be intimidated by the Unionists. SOUNDBITE: (English) "We want an agreement with the Unionists and we seek to come to this very very positively. But we have to say that we will not be intimidated by Unionist stunts, by Unionist intransigence, by Unionist refusal to engage, because that is Unionism trying to put a brake, trying to put a stop, trying to prevent the type of change which is required." SUPER CAPTION: Gerry Adams, Sinn Fein leader With Thursday night's deadline drawing ever closer, the Ulster Unionist party is still to be persuaded to accept some form of compromise, after rejecting a deal on Tuesday. Its leader, David Trimble, contended that the 65-page plan would give the overwhelmingly Catholic Irish Republic too much influence over Northern Ireland. But Catholic parties in the process are pushing for just that sort of cross-border linkage - an expression of their desire for a united Ireland. To achieve this end, they propose a strong Ireland-Northern Ireland council, complete with decision-making powers. Trimble said much work to secure an agreement lay ahead, and although he did not rule out agreement, he remained firm. SOUNDBITE: (English) "I think with regard to the personalities you've mentioned the big question is will they accept partition, will they enter a Northern Ireland Assembly, will they say to the people of Ireland that the war is over, that they are going to accept the democratic path and start to deal with all the consequences of the violence that they have been part of for the last 25 years." SUPER CAPTION: David Trimble, Ulster Unionist Party leader But Britain's Northern Ireland Secretary Mo Mowlam remained optimistic that an agreement could be reached within the deadline. She said no one should underestimate the determination of the parties. SOUNDBITE: (English) "I still remain convinced primarily because of the effort and determination that the parties are putting in today that it's seriously possible to find an agreement by the end of tomorrow, by tomorrow night's deadline. As I'm sure others have said to you, no one should underestimate the difficulty of the decisions that are still to be taken but equally you shouldn't underestimate the determination not only of your desire to go home but also the desire of the parties in there to find an accommodation." SUPER CAPTION: Mo Mowlam, Northern Ireland Secretary Later on Wednesday, the Irish premier Bertie Ahern added his calls for an agreement. SOUNDBITE: (English) SUPER CAPTION: Bertie Ahern, Irish Prime Minister SOUNDBITE: (English) SUPER CAPTION: Gerry Adams, Sinn Fein leader Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...