Since the late 1980s, while the IRA continued its armed campaign, its political wing Sinn Féin, led since 1983 by Gerry Adams, sought a negotiated end to the conflict, although Adams accurately predicted that this would be a very long process.
Od konca 80-tych rokov zatiaľ čo IRA pokračovala v jej ozbrojenej kampani, jej politické krídlo Sinn Féin, ktoré viedol Gerry Adams od roku 1983, hľadali riešenia na ukončenie konfliktu hoci Adams presne predpovedal, že to bude veľmi dlhý proces.