Ms Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze:

I am grateful that even on this stage the Prime Minister of Ireland has yet again voiced his support for Ukraine, which is very important for us. It is important that representatives of different friendly countries are also doing an advocacy job for Ukraine. Regarding the message right now, the decision of the government was that a few ministers, including the Deputy Prime Minister who has responsibility for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration would now travel to certain sceptical countries to argue our case. We, as MPs, are also working through the friendship groups like the European integration committee engaging with the people from the foreign affairs committee to mobilise all the resources. We are also co-ordinating our efforts with non-governmental organisations that are also actively connecting. Obviously, the president is also involved in this endeavour. We hope that this multilayer approach will give the result by the end of June.

I see how much difficulty there has been on agreeing the sixth package of sanctions. I reiterate that we need to be serious about our values and our principles if we really mean all those words that have been repeated so many times. I was in the NGO sector before getting involved in politics following the revolution of dignity in 2014. I was brought up on those values that we believe in. On behalf of all those who taught us those values, some doing it from textbooks, we would like to really stand up for them and be ready to pay the price for them as well. That type of discussion needs to happen sometimes openly but sometimes behind closed doors in the EU.

One of my main messages to the corporate giants is about responsibility and some honest solidarity towards Ukrainian companies but also about responsibility in not having the blood of Ukrainians on the profits they are getting.

Short-term losses in the Russian Federation could be a result of this responsibility and the value-based business strategies. It could bring about bigger and better results in the mid- to long-term future. Some are engaged in social responsibility. Unfortunately, some are performing very strange policies of really protecting lives for about two years by withdrawing from the Russian Federation but paying one year or two years' salary to their former employees in the Russian Federation. Maybe they could match that pledge with some assistance going to Ukraine. It is case-by-case. There are a lot of corporations here which understand a value-based approach very well. They are leading by example and engaging others and are advocating with other companies in order to get out of the Russian Federation.

I thank the member for the question with regard to independent foreign policy. I am one of those people who believes that neutrality for Ukraine, if it is accepted today, would mean slavery for us tomorrow. It would confirm that Russia would have us under its sphere of influence and that we would be coming back to the great power struggle which lead to the First World War and the Second World War. In 2014, according to our constitution, our laws and our legal system, we were a non-aligned and a non-bloc country. That did not preclude the Russian Federation, which was a guarantor of our security, from grabbing part of our territory by illegal annexation and from starting the war in the east of Ukraine. Therefore, once we win this war and once we restore our territory's integrity, the first step should be Ukraine being admitted to NATO. Ukraine will be a huge asset to NATO and we will also benefit from being with other like-minded countries. That common strength will be another deterrent to Russia from attacking further.

I would like to close by once again thanking the committee for such a thorough engagement in all the matters that are so important right now for Ukraine. I would like to thank Ireland and the Irish people, Parliament, politicians and Government for everything they are doing for Ukraine. I would encourage them not to get fatigued or tired. As value-based societies, we do not have the right to be tired of this war until we bring it to common victory. It has to be our common cause to achieve victory over the evil that has arisen again in the 21st century.