Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It was no surprise that the first topic of discussion at the EU Council meeting - as was the case at the previous meeting, it dominated proceedings - was the ongoing devastating assault on Ukraine by the Russian Federation. In particular, I refer to some of the events that have happened in recent times, including the destruction of the Kakhovka dam and the long-term implications of this, which have reached as far as Odessa. Ground has been contaminated, land mines have floated across civilian areas and very serious matters must be addressed in terms of even the potential of agricultural land in the area. Additionally, and probably even more concerning, is the vulnerability of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and its potential implications, not only for Ukraine, Russia and Belarus but for all of Europe and, indeed, the world should anything happen to this facility. The International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, has been sounding alarm bells in this regard. I do not know if there is anything further we as a world community can do, but the notion that an absolutely catastrophic incident could occur there is beyond imagination.

Holding the aggressors, in this case all those Russian entities and individuals that have caused this devastation, to account is extremely important. The International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, ICPA, is about to begin its work and I hope that we as a nation will be fully co-operative and supportive of any finance or other requirements. We should do this to make it crystal clear that everybody in Russia with fingerprints on the devastation caused by that country's aggression in Ukraine will be, ultimately, be held to account at some stage, whenever it may be. The Council of Europe has established a register of damage caused by the aggressor, which is the Russian Federation, against Ukraine. It is crucially important that we catalogue every instance of damage and hurt caused so there can be full accountability. This will be incredibly important for the future. The vulnerability of Moldova was also mentioned and we might come back to this topic in questioning. Moldova is not only politically vulnerable but economically vulnerable because of what is going on. I also wish to raise some other issues in the few minutes I have left.

The Council discussed the report of the Commission on the effects of the US Inflation Reduction Act, the so-called IRA Act, on member states. This is an issue I have repeatedly raised here. Perhaps the Minister of State might indicate whether we have had a domestic evaluation and assessment of the impact of this legislative measure in the US on investment here or its potential impact in future. I hope that he and his colleague in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment will be carrying out such an assessment.

On China, the Council seems ambivalent and unclear. It has stated its multifaceted approach of simultaneously being a partner, a competitor and a systemic rival. Some of these terms sound mutually exclusive. What does it really mean to be a partner and a systemic rival? Does the EU as a whole, and I will be interested in teasing this aspect out with the Minister of State, have an agreed approach to China or is this actually a matter for each member state to chart its own course and determine its own relationship? Reading the Council's conclusions certainly leaves us confused. It was stated that the EU should seek to develop trade and economic partnership and yet, at the same time, reduce vulnerabilities and have further de-risking and diversification. There is an ambivalence here that needs to be clarified for us.

I also wish to raise the issue of migration. This is the quintessential issue. No agreed position has emerged from this Council meeting because it was vetoed by Poland and Hungary, or certainly not allowed to progress. Migration is the most important issue, other than the current war in Europe, for which we need a long-term solution. I hope we can have a debate here in the next session regarding our approach to this critical issue.

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