Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams says the families of IRA members killed during the Troubles broadly support plans for Martin McGuinness to meet the Queen.
The Queen has never met a senior figure from the now-defunct IRA - which killed her cousin Lord Mountbatten in 1979 - or its political wing Sinn Fein.
"I'm touched by the way the families of IRA patriot dead have largely responded in a very understanding and positive way to this," Mr Adams told Sky News' Murnaghan programme.
"We're Irish republicans, we're against a monarchy of any kind, but we do respect our unionist neighbours and their view and their sense of identity on these issues and that's why we took this decision.
"The reason why it is a big step is because many people, including some of my family, members suffered dreadfully - one was killed - at the hands of British Crown forces."
Mr McGuinness turned down an invitation to meet the Queen during her visit to Ireland last year.
On Friday, Sinn Fein decided to sanction the meeting, which would have seemed inconceivable a generation ago.
Unionist Lord Trimble, former first minister of Northern Ireland, said the meeting had been "inevitable".
"I'm not surprised that it's happening. I'm a little bit surprised at the fuss (Sinn Fein) are making about it. I'm sure they've known for ages that this was inevitable."
Mr Adams declined to say whether Mr McGuinness was likely to offer an apology to the Queen for the killing of Lord Mountbatten, saying: "Let's not be raking over the coals."
Some have suggested that the meeting with the Queen could pave the way for Sinn Fein MPs to take their seats in the House of Commons.
They do not sit in the UK parliament, because of the requirement to swear an oath of allegiance to the Queen.
But Mr Adams dismissed the issue as a distraction, adding: "We're now increasingly governing ourselves in the north."
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