Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It falls to me to conclude this debate and to welcome the ambassador from Ukraine. H.E. Larysa Gerasko and her colleagues are very welcome. The ambassador represents the second largest country in Europe, which is often forgotten in the debates that we have. It is a country of more than 40 million people and is second in size to Russia. It has been heartening to hear the widespread support for Ukraine in the statements today. As the Minister, Deputy Coveney said, the support in the Dáil and indeed in the Oireachtas is a reflection of the support for the Ukrainian people in Irish society. I am conscious that people across the country are following the issue closely, learning more about Ukraine, and are looking closely at our statements.

We in Ireland have a privilege that not everyone in the world enjoys, that is, the privilege to live in a free society and a democracy. The Chamber in which we speak is the realisation and symbol of that free society. The privilege comes with a duty too, that is, a duty to maintain democracy. Every generation must recognise and meet that duty. The continuance of democracy cannot be guaranteed passively or taken for granted. In 2019, not so long ago, we in the Dáil celebrated our House's centenary. Many of the Members here will remember the sense of pride with which this institution marked the Dáil100 commemoration. It was a landmark moment for the nation and a reminder to us as Deputies, elected by the people, that we have a particular role as stewards of democracy. Our freedom was hard-won.

To those who say we should be doing more at the United Nations, I suggest they watch the speech of our ambassador to the United Nations, Geraldine Byrne Nason, who does us proud every day of the week on the United Nations Security Council, in which she reminded everybody around that table that we support the rights of Ukraine to its territorial integrity and an independent foreign policy because we fought hard for those rights. That is why we have a seat on the Security Council. This is not a question of military neutrality or a question of NATO; it is a very simple question of right or wrong, in accordance with the United Nations Charter. As defenders of democracy, we cannot be concerned with only our own country. Deputy O'Donoghue set out the interconnectedness of the world. Democracy must be stood for as well.

I have worked extensively with the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and the Taoiseach on relations with the EU's eastern neighbourhood. We have seen the immense challenges Ukraine has faced due to external pressures. These include cyberattacks, of which we have our own experience, and the attempted interference and threatening military posture of Russia. Russia has an unprecedented number of troops completely encircling Ukraine, including in Belarus. I urge those who blame NATO to go and look in the face of any of my colleagues or any politician from any of the Baltic states or from any of the countries neighbouring Russia. Deputy Connolly mentioned men warmongering. I urge her to listen to the Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, an incredible woman who has spoken out not only for peace but also for the security of her country, which is threatened all the time. Estonians live in fear of that threat because they have experienced it time and time again.

Ukraine, like Ireland, has had a hard-won independence. It has also had a hard-won path to establishing itself as a sovereign democracy free from foreign interference. Yet it has stuck stubbornly to that choice, no matter what is thrown at it, and the people of Ukraine have increasingly supported democracy, the rule of law and possible membership of the European Union. If you talk to the people of Ukraine and consider the relevant opinion polls, as we have seen reported in the press, you will find they support NATO. Ireland has decided not to join NATO. That is our sovereign choice. Equally, it is the sovereign choice of the Ukrainians to join NATO if that is what they want to do.

Last summer I participated virtually in the Ukraine Reform Conference, which analysed Ukraine's reform work in detail. We have seen the incredible work to which Ukraine has committed itself in pursuing a reform process in recent years to establish stronger institutions and better societal resilience. As envisaged in its association agreement with the EU, which was opposed by the main opposition group in the European Parliament and opposed in the Dáil in a motion, real reforms have been made towards strengthening the rule of law, despite strong efforts on the part of vested interests to undermine it. Despite external aggression that has been ongoing since 2014, the Ukrainian people have never backed down in their will to strengthen their democracy and to build strong institutions. They have refused to be intimidated in the defence of their sovereignty, their democracy and their freedom. They know that, like in Ireland, economic and social progress derive from our democracy and our commitments to the rule of law.

I thank the Ukrainian ambassador to Ireland and our ambassador in Ukraine. Deputy Berry made a fair point that we should be very concerned for our people in Ukraine. We have diplomats and other people working in Ukraine and in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, OSCE. There are detailed plans to evacuate staff if that becomes necessary. We are ensconced with the EU mission in Ukraine and we have had discussions as to how staff would be evacuated. They need to be there today, however. There is work to be done. Many Irish citizens are still there. They are urged to leave if they can. Our diplomats, however, continue to work and to give service to the Irish people there and to further relations between Ukraine and Ireland.

Belarus was mentioned. Our Government and our Parliament have shown strong support for the cause of democracy there too. The Government and the Oireachtas were proud to welcome Ms Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya to Ireland last year to discuss Belarus's situation. Developments in Belarus have been worrying. More than 30,000 Russian troops are now stationed in Belarus. They arrived ostensibly for joint military exercises, which do happen there from time to time, but they did not leave when the drills were completed. Now the Belarusian defence ministry alleges that the increased military activity in the Donbas and near the borders of the so-called union state of Russia and Belarus justifies keeping forces in Belarus. The people of Belarus did not ask for this and did not agree to any unification with Russia, and we certainly do not recognise such a union. The Belarusian opposition leader, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, put out a recent statement that Belarus is being drawn into a foreign war and turned into an aggressor country. Alexander Lukashenko is moving ahead with a constitutional referendum this Sunday, which will be profoundly anti-democratic and will show contempt for his own people and his disregard for peace and security.

I had the opportunity to represent Ireland at last year's ministerial meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Stockholm. That meeting was an eye-opener for me. I was present at a meeting at which the Russian foreign minister had a long engagement with his Ukrainian and American counterparts and, strangely enough, his Norwegian counterpart. Norway is a very strong country in support of peace as well. The meeting certainly opened my eyes. In conversations I had with the Ukrainian foreign minister back in early December, it was clear to me that Ukraine was very worried about this period in February. The OSCE remains a unique and crucial platform for security co-operation in Europe, with the value-adding capability of maintaining dialogue on security issues between all parties in the region. The OSCE special monitoring mission to Ukraine, the largest OSCE presence in the region, has made an important contribution in eastern Ukraine over the years. The Government believes that the OSCE is the appropriate forum at which to discuss the European security architecture, inclusive of all 57 participating states of the OSCE.

Peace is a choice. War is a choice. This Dáil, I have no doubt, makes the choice for peace. It is important we send a clear message from this Chamber that peace is always possible and that it is always possible to draw back from the brink and to choose peace. Ireland has learnt the hard way the lesson of peace on this island. The Irish Government and our European partners at EU level, at OSCE level and on the UN Security Council will continue to pursue the path of peace and to call on the leadership of the Russian Federation to do the same. Supporting basic principles of the United Nations' founding Charter is not a breach of our neutrality; it is our obligation as a democratic state and a member of the United Nations.

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