Description
The Northern Ireland peace process is regarded as the poster-child of peace processes, with it being used as a case study for international conflicts around the world. Whilst it was signed in 1998, the road to this agreement was much longer. Secret talk, and talks about talks appear to have been occurring throughout the conflict, but particularly from 1986 onwards. Actors behind the scenes from Northern Ireland, mainland Britain and the Republic of Ireland maintained covert lines of communication at varying levels through the peace process. What emerges from the archive material is that these actors deliberately used ambiguity and confidentiality during this period. This paper will consider the following questions: why different regional actors deliberately used ambiguity and confidentiality during the Northern Ireland Peace Process? Was the manner in which the regional actors used ambiguity and confidentiality different to each other? What was the impact of the use of ambiguity and confidentiality?
