The Sinn Féin president is due to return from Washington today after a series of high-level meetings with senior politicians and officials from the Bush administration.

Gerry Adams said his three-day visit focused on the need to restore the Northern Ireland's power-sharing executive, which, he says, "should never have been suspended".

Mr Adams, who met US President George W Bush’s special advisor on Northern Ireland, Ambassador Richard Haass, and several members of the US Congress, claimed Ulster Unionist threats to quit the talks over the row about cross-border bodies had not been received well on Capitol Hill.

In addition to this, there was anger among Congressmen, he said, at Mr Trimble’s recent criticism of the Irish Republic in an interview with a Chicago newspaper.

The West Belfast MP said that he had also stressed during the meetings of the need for the British government to commit itself in a contract to "honouring outstanding aspects" of the Good Friday Agreement.

According to American media reports, Mr Adams said the British government had to come forward with a "comprehensive, time-framed programme" for implementation of the Agreement.

Meanwhile David Trimble is scheduled to meet with the Secretary of State Paul Murphy later today in London to discuss unionist concerns over cross-border bodies.

The UUP has indicated it could withdraw from multi-party talks aimed at restoring devolution if there is a private deal between the British and Irish governments on the North South Ministerial Council.

(AMcE)