Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

First, I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I assure her that no issue should be excluded from debate and discussion in this House. It is fundamental to our national Parliament that we would have open and free debate and that the voice of contrarian is always heard. I do not apply that to the Deputy in this context but the voice of the contrarian should always be heard. Groupthink is always dangerous and we should not always follow the herd on any issue, be it the economy, education or anything.

Historically, if you go back 100 years, or go back further than 100 years to 1916, an interesting key ingredient of our revolution was that it was internationalist. It was not a narrow nationalism. It was internationalist from day one.

I am referring to the idea of Ireland taking its place among the nations of the world. Our membership of the League of Nations and UN has been about adherence and loyalty to multilateral rules-based order. Stemming from this are our obligations as members of the UN and, laterally, the EU. Ireland will soon be celebrating 50 years of EU membership. That means that when the international rules-based order is attacked, we cannot stand alone as an island that is not impacted. The war in Ukraine is a war on the international rules-based order; be in no doubt about it. Putin does not want a thriving democracy on his doorstep. Fundamentally, that is what is at stake. He has raised issues of geopolitical security. They can be dealt with and agreed upon. Leaders of the EU have said to President Putin that they are open to discussions to resolve issues to do with the security architecture of Europe. However, as we speak he is bombing innocent women, children and families. He is also bombing energy infrastructure. He is deliberately, as part of a hybrid form of warfare, creating migration, energy and food crises. I do not believe that, morally, we can stand aside. Sixty-six thousand people have come to this country from Ukraine. I acknowledge it is a huge challenge. The vast majority of Irish people have opened up and said they will do what they can. This is a wartime situation; that is what we are facing. We cannot allow Putin to win by sowing the seeds of division among us because of the pressures and challenges that inevitably arise from migration flows.

With regard to international protection more globally, climate change and more conflict in places such as Ethiopia, in Africa, and the Middle East are all leading to increased migration. It is not only in Ireland but across the world. That is a reality we will have to continue to deal with and we have to stand up to our responsibilities and do the best we can on the issue.

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