Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have received apologies from Deputy Cowen and Senator Ó Donnghaile. I welcome H.E. Ms Larysa Gerasko, Ukrainian Ambassador to Ireland, who is present with us in the Visitors Gallery. She is very welcome to the committee. I ask that all those present in the committee room exercise personal responsibility to protect themselves and others from the risk of contracting Covid-19.

I welcome our guests from Ukraine. We are meeting this afternoon with the committee on foreign affairs and interparliamentary co-operation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. I am very pleased this meeting has been arranged via Microsoft Teams in order for us, the members of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence of the Houses of the Oireachtas in Ireland, to receive an update on the current situation in Ukraine. It gives me great pleasure to welcome the chair of the committee, Mr. Oleksandr Merezhko, along with his colleagues. We can have introductions from Mr. Merezhko's side, insofar as they are appropriate and relevant, once we start.

I welcome Deputy Brady. As we have not yet fully resumed our in-person meetings, there may be some of our members who are attending from their offices. If so, I will introduce them in accordance with their wish and desire to speak.

Everybody is welcome.

The format of our meeting is in the usual manner. We will hear our guests’ opening statement, followed by a question and answer session with members of the committee. I trust that members will be concise in their questioning.

I remind both witnesses and members of the long-standing parliamentary practice that we should not criticise or make charges against any person or entity by name or in such a way as to make them in any way identifiable or otherwise engage in speech that might be regarded as damaging to the good name of the person or entity. For witnesses attending in a remote form outside of Leinster House campus, there are some limitations to parliamentary privilege and, as such, they may not benefit from the same level of immunity from legal proceedings as a witness physically present in the room does. I wish also to remind members that they are only allowed to participate in this meeting if they are physically located within the Leinster House complex.

With that, I now call on Mr. Merezhko to make his opening remarks. I thank him and his colleagues for taking time to visit us and attend our meeting this afternoon.