John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I agree that diplomacy is the only way. Ultimately, this war will be brought to an end because of the failure, as we have seen, of the Russian military, which was made out to be a great fighting force. Due to the heroism of the Ukrainian forces, it certainly is not having its own way. It is hard to see how and when Russia will meet its military aims. In the meantime, unfortunately, we are seeing civilians being butchered and cities being destroyed.

What role does the Minister see for a militarily non-aligned country such as Ireland in trying to push forward a peaceful solution? I absolutely agree that it is right and proper for us to call out what is an illegal invasion, but the fact is we are militarily non-aligned. There has to be a role for countries such as Ireland in developing a peaceful solution.

I welcome the Minister's visit to Kyiv. However, it is notable that we are one of a few countries that have not re-established its embassy there. Doing so would show solidarity with the Ukrainian people in these horrible times. Reopening our embassy would be a small but very meaningful way to show we extend our solidarity to them.

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