On the 30th anniversary of the IRA ceasefire, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern recalls most people thought the agreement was simply “smoke and mirrors”. 

The Irish Republican Army called its ceasefire on August 31st, 1994 – the beginning of the end of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. 

Loyalist paramilitaries followed suit two months later, ceasing "all operational hostilities", eventually leading to the Good Friday Agreement in 1997. 

Reflecting on the anniversary, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern praised fellow former Taoiseach Albert Reynolds for his work with other political leaders in the 1990s. 

He noted, however, that many thought the ceasefire would never last. 

“People were very critical of Albert,” he told The Anton Savage Show. 

“People thought it was a bit of a smokescreen and it wasn't going anywhere, and that the IRA wouldn't deliver. 

“I clearly remember Martin McGinnis being quite annoyed about that and doing an interview where he said that this had been going on for 25 years – don't expect it to be over in 25 days. 

“I don't blame people maybe for not believing it, but it was a terrible time.” 

Mr Ahern also credited Martin McGuinness and John Hume for their work to facilitate a Provisional IRA ceasefire. 

He said he recently learned more about just how far Mr Hume was willing to go to bring peace to Northern Ireland. 

Albert Reynolds, Bertie Ahern and John Hume. Image: Associated Press / Alamy Stock Photo

“The risks he took - he was in a van for about two days driving around Northern Ireland, not knowing where he was, to actually engage with [the IRA] and try to convince them that there could be a national consensus,” he said. 

“It didn't happen overnight either, as we know, even after the great success in ‘94 - in ‘95, things went back again and the whole thing broke down again in February ‘96. 

“But even to get a breather and stop the horrendous violence of ‘93 was a massive achievement.” 

Now, 30 years later, Mr Ahern said he would like to see “more” achieved in building consensus in Northern Ireland. 

“The stop-start nature of the political institutions, I think was avoidable,” he said. 

“But they’re all up and running now... talking about education, they're talking about health, they're talking about infrastructure.” 

He noted that current Taoiseach Simon Harris is very invested in developing more North-South institutions and relations.