London and Dublin launch new talks aimed at restoring Northern Ireland's devolved government

London and Dublin launch new talks aimed at restoring Northern Ireland's devolved government
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By Euronews
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In a joint statement released on Friday, the UK and Ireland's leaders announced a new round of political talks to revive Northern Ireland's devolved government.

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The UK and Ireland have agreed to a "three-stranded process" of political talks in a bid to revive the devolved government of Northern Ireland.

Belfast has been without its Stormont Assembly since January 2017 after it was suspended over leadership disagreements.

The joint statement from UK Prime Minister Theresa May and Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar on Friday laid out plans for a new round of talks, and an intergovernmental conference to discuss relations, security and political stability in Northern Ireland.

"We are determined to work together to ensure this process comes to a successful conclusion," the statement added.

Friday's announcement came just over a week after the murder of 29-year-old journalist Lyra Mckee in Londonderry.

Both May and Varadkar attended Mckee's funeral earlier this week.

A dissident Irish republican group called the New IRA has said it was responsible for the fatal shooting of Mckee on Easter weekend.

The group later apologised, maintaining its volunteer had been aiming at police during the night of rioting in Londonderry, however, the apology has been widely rejected by those on both sides of Northern Ireland's political divide.

READ MORE: Two men arrested over Lyra McKee's murder, Northern Irish police say

READ MORE: Police in Northern Ireland arrest two suspects over journalist Lyra Mckee's killing

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