Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In many regions around the world, people are facing intense oppression and humanitarian crises brought on by oppressive regimes. All these wars are extremely challenging for Europe. The brutal war being raged by the Russian Government in Ukraine has no end in sight. President Zelenskyy has shown strong leadership since the war started, as he did in speaking to the joint Houses of the Oireachtas this morning. Day by day, more horrific accounts of war crimes are coming to light. These must be punished and Putin must be held responsible.

We are witnessing increased violence in Palestine at the hand of apartheid Israel. There are illegal settlements and administrative detentions. The voices of Michael Lynk and Amnesty International are among an increasing number of reputable voices calling out Israel's apartheid nature. If we are going to be consistent in our condemnation of terror, Israel must be sanctioned for its crimes, which have made a two-state solution virtually impossible.

War in Yemen is destroying countless lives with the arms industry in Europe the only beneficiary as it makes eye-watering profits. If we are going to be consistent, Saudi Arabia must be sanctioned for its crimes.

From the Council of Europe to the UN Security Council, Ireland needs to be a progressive voice and a leader for developing nations such as Western Sahara, which for years was under European colonial rule and is now under Moroccan occupation. Ireland is a small nation and needs to be a voice for other small nations such as Western Sahara. We must promote the right of the Western Saharan people to self-determination and allow them to complete the process of decolonisation.

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