Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the ambassador for her strong statement. As she knows, we are in absolute solidarity with her and her people.

About three weeks ago, I travelled to Ukraine. Some of my colleagues did earlier in the summer. I was really glad that I travelled. For me, it was important to show solidarity but also to bear witness to and experience what it is like on the ground for those who are under siege. On the night that I was there, there was very heavy bombing in Kyiv and four people sadly lost their lives. We spent most of the night in a bomb shelter but travelled to that area. I have to say that while it was incredibly difficult, obviously, for those who died, who included a 12-year-old girl and two people in a cardiac unit in a hospital, I was struck by how the city of Kyiv adapted and how they immediately had counsellors there to support families and immediately had the machinery there to take down the remnants of the houses and apartments so that they would not be a danger to people. While it was good to see it, it was also saddening because the experience over the last number of years has been channelled into the way in which all of that has to be dealt with. I was also struck by the resilience of all the people that we met, both those in politics and those outside of politics. That strength of resolution and character will always remain with me.

There are a few questions that I might ask. From the ambassador's perspective, what does a just and lasting peace for Ukraine look like?