John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The role of the EU in addressing Boris Johnson's government's shameful and opportunistic exploitation of the issues surrounding the protocol remains critical. The British Government, along with its allies in the DUP, is using the protocol to undermine the Good Friday Agreement. The British Government cannot and must not be allowed to play free and easy with an international agreement which has brought about peace on this island.

I welcome the criticism by the Council of Europe of the Tory government's plans to introduce legislation to protect members of the British army guilty of crimes against the Irish people by offering them immunity from prosecution. This is another attempt by the British to deny the families of victims here in Ireland truth and justice.

I join my party leader Deputy McDonald in reiterating Sinn Féin's support for Ukraine's application to join the EU. Ireland must continue to play its role as a militarily neutral, non-aligned State within the EU. I also reiterate my support for sanctions against Russia and the efforts being made to offer aid to the Ukrainian people. As an act of solidarity, like many other EU countries have done, we must open the Irish Embassy in Kyiv as a matter of urgency.

Yesterday was World Refugee Day. We can be proud of Ireland's record in offering a haven to those who have been forced to flee the conflict in Ukraine. However, there is still no clarity on the pledge by the Government to accept 500 vulnerable Ukrainian refugees who are in Moldova. I ask the Taoiseach to address that issue and provide some clarity on the commitment the Government made in March.

One of the consequences of the Russian invasion is the food shortage, which has impacted in Africa and parts of the Middle East. In many areas that have already been ravaged by climate change and regional conflict, shortages of wheat and grain are set to lead to humanitarian catastrophe. This will lead to mass migration as millions will seek to flee famine and war. The EU must act to prevent this human tragedy from unfolding further.

The response of the EU to the war in Ukraine has largely been laudable and it foregrounds the importance of territorial integrity, the need for states to operate within the parameters of the international rules-based system, and the need for international law to be universally applied. Unfortunately, the recent gas deal between the EU and Israel falls short of the moral and legal obligations of the EU and Ireland towards the Palestinian people. This deal runs contrary to long-standing EU and Irish policy, which requires that "all agreements between the State of Israel and the EU must unequivocally and explicitly indicate their inapplicability to the territories occupied by Israel in 1967".This deal contravenes UN policy as set out in the UN Security Council Resolution 2334. States have a moral and legal obligation "to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967".

The Government was recently briefed by the UN special rapporteur on the situation with human rights in the Palestine occupied territories since 1967. Professor Michael Lynk has stated that Palestinians in the occupied territories are living under a "system of apartheid". Neither Ireland nor the EU can bypass their own values, the UN and international law for the sake of what is a dodgy deal. Israel has been exploiting occupied Palestinian territories for decades now. This includes the mineral wealth on Palestinian land and in its waters. The colonial settlement expansion programme in the occupied territories is a grave breach of international law. Last year we took a unanimous decision in Dáil Éireann that Israel has illegally annexed Palestinian land. We cannot now about-turn and support a deal that not only undermines the decisions of this Dáil, but also directly contravenes international law, even if a Minister believes it convenient to do so. International law is not a pick and mix. It must be applied equally and in all instances. All lawbreakers must be held to account and not rewarded.

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