Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the tenor of the question. Of course, ultimately, this is about bringing the war to an end. Like every other country, we have to find ways of doing that. While that is proving impossible at the moment because the Kremlin does not want the war to end yet and, therefore, there is no basis for a possible ceasefire right now, that does not mean we should not keep trying. In the meantime, we have to put in place the strongest possible deterrents to the continuation of the war. That means very tough sanctions and helping the Ukrainians to defend themselves, as well as being as generous as we can from a humanitarian point of view to support Ukrainians who are fleeing to neighbouring countries or within Ukraine. We are involved in all of that. I assure the Deputy that my focus continues to be on exploring ways in which a ceasefire could be negotiated and agreed, and the conditions under which that would be possible.

We have to do so in a way that keeps Ukraine at the centre of all those discussions. It must be a case of nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.

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