Ulster nationalism represents a reaction from within unionism to the perceived uncertainty of the future of the Union by the British government. Its leadership and members have all been unionists and have tended to react to what they viewed as crises surrounding the status of Northern Ireland as a part of the United Kingdom, such as the moves towards power-sharing in the 1970s or the Belfast Agreement of 1998, which briefly saw the UIM become a minor force. In such instances it has been considered preferable by the supporters of this ideological movement to remove the British dimension either partially (Dominion status) or fully (independence) to avoid a united Ireland.