As the taoiseach (prime minister) of Ireland from 1992, Albert Reynolds, who has died aged 81 after suffering from Alzheimer's disease, is credited, along with his British counterpart John Major, with a crucial role in energising the long-drawn-out peace process in Northern Ireland. It was an issue he had shown little interest in before but, having been apprised of secret efforts to persuade the IRA and loyalists to call ceasefires and halt all violence, Reynolds forged a very close relationship with Major, and decided to take great risks to achieve the objective.
Thus he travelled north incognito to meet emissaries from the various loyalist groups and engaged face to face with representatives of every party to the conflict, notably through discussions facilitated by the peacemaker Father Alec Reid of Clonard Monastery. As a result of these efforts, Reynolds was able to stand with Major outside 10 Downing Street in December 1993 to present an agreed declaration that set out a roadmap for formal peace talks. Although it was greeted with initial suspicion by the participants, the IRA and loyalists both declared ceasefires in 1994, and its groundbreaking framework culminated in the Good Friday agreement four years later.
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