Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of Britain took an unaccustomed victory lap on Monday, visiting Belfast to celebrate the restoration of Northern Ireland\u2019s power-sharing government. His ministers struck a deal last week that brought the North\u2019s disaffected unionists back into the territory\u2019s assembly.<\/p>\n

For Mr. Sunak, who is embattled on so many other fronts, it was a rare unalloyed success \u2014 significant not just because it ended two years of political stalemate<\/a> in Northern Ireland, but also because, some analysts believe, it could shore up a United Kingdom that has seemed in danger of spinning apart since Brexit.<\/p>\n

With the revival of self-government in Northern Ireland, diplomats and analysts said, the spotlight will shift away from the tantalizing prospect of uniting the North with the Irish Republic and shine on everyday issues like cutting waiting times at hospitals or giving pay raises to public workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a head of steam building on the issue of Irish unity,\u201d said Katy Hayward, professor of politics at Queen\u2019s University in Belfast. \u201cNothing was working, everything was broken, so people were thinking about the alternative. If you have the institutions working, it relieves the pressure a little.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n