The leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has called for Irish President Michael D Higgins to reconsider his decision to turn down an invite to a church service to mark Northern Ireland’s centenary.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said it was a “disappointing and retrograde step”.
Earlier, the Alliance Party also said President Higgins should reconsider.
The Queen has been invited to the service, which has been organised by Christian church leaders.
It will take place at the Church of Ireland cathedral in Armagh city on 21 October.
The inter-denominational service is part of a programme of events to mark the centenary of the partition of Ireland and the formation of Northern Ireland in 1921.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for President Higgins said he was “not in a position to attend the ceremony and this has been communicated to the organisers”.
It is understood he had been expected to attend. He did not offer any further explanation of his decision.
“We don’t know the reason why he has decided not to attend this service,” Sir Jeffrey told the BBC’s Nolan Show.
“We hope he will rethink this decision. It is not conducive to the kind of respectful relationship with the head of state of our neighbouring jurisdiction.”
“In the absence of clarity around the reason for him not attending many may reach a conclusion that it is a decision based on politics.
“When you consider the standard Her Majesty the Queen set when she went to Ireland in that historic visit she crossed boundaries, broke taboos and set a clear example of how to do reconciliation.”
“It is a retrograde step taking us backwards when the president of the Republic of Ireland cannot attend a service of this nature that has been called by the churches,” said Sir Jeffrey.
“It is disappointing. One wonders has the Irish government advised the president not to attend and if so was it taken for political reason?”
Sir Jeffrey said the service was about “marking the centenary”, which he added was a “fairly neutral term”.
BBC News NI has approached the Irish government for comment.
‘Surprising and uncharacteristic’
Alliance Party MP Stephen Farry also said President Higgins should reconsider his position.
“This event is very much in keeping with the reconciliation efforts of successive Irish presidents and the Queen over recent years and the inclusive approach to marking the decade of centenaries,” he said.
However independent assembly member Trevor Lunn, formerly of the Alliance Party, tweeted in support of the president’s decision.
“I don’t see it as a discourtesy to Her Majesty, just a correct if difficult decision,” he wrote.
SDLP assembly member Matthew O’Toole said President Higgins had taken part in “some of the most important and landmark moments of reconciliation” in recent years.
He said “we simply don’t know” the president’s reason for not be attending the centenary church service.
“I would say very clearly that Michael D Higgins throughout his tenure as president has been clearly committed to reconciliation,” he told BBC News NI.
“Reconciliation is also about not jumping to the worst possible conclusion about people and understanding this stuff is sometimes quite complex.”
Ulster Unionist Party assembly member Mike Nesbitt described the move as “surprising and uncharacteristic from someone who has shown a consistent willingness to reach out and promote reconciliation”.
“The reciprocal state visits were a high watermark in Anglo-Irish relations and until we know the reason why he is not in a position to attend, we cannot be critical,” he said.
The leader of Aontú, Peadar Tóibín, said President Higgins had made “the right decision not to attend the event”.
“There isn’t a president in the world that would attend an event to mark, commemorate or celebrate the partition of his or her country,” he said.
So far the church leaders have made no comment about the issue.
President Higgins is in Italy and has not yet responded to calls for him to reconsider his decision or give his reasons.
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