Seán Haughey (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is great that the Taoiseach was able to meet with President Zelenskyy and express to him our solidarity with the people of Ukraine. As we know, the EU has agreed the tenth round of sanctions, which include new enforcement measures and additional reporting requirements. However, in response, the hard-hitting Belgian MEP, Guy Verhofstadt, tweeted last week that:

...the 10th sanction package is weak...as one country protects its Russian friends, another wants to go after Russian rubber, several like to keep hiding Russian Central Bank assets. High time to abolish unanimity!

I certainly would not go that far. The evidence indicates that Ireland is doing very well in the implementation of the sanctions. Is there much evidence available to indicate that the sanctions are being violated and circumvented? Should other non-Western countries be persuaded to join in the effort, or at least not be allowed to facilitate the circumvention of existing sanctions? In this regard, I would like to welcome the appointment of David O'Sullivan as international special envoy for the implementation of the EU sanctions. What is the Taoiseach's understanding of his work to date and when will his comprehensive assessment of the position be expected?

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