John McGahon (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have a very different view when it comes to Irish neutrality and there must be a discussion on this issue. The international scene and international relations have changed fundamentally as a result of Russian aggression, so the time will come to have a mature debate about that in this country. Looking at the refugee trains leaving Ukraine for Poland, those same trains are going straight back to Ukraine full of men. Approximately 80,000 Ukrainian men have returned to their country to take up arms against a Russian tyrant and Russian aggression. They have crossed that border. We should, like all other European countries, be sending weapons to Ukraine. I fundamentally and wholeheartedly believe that. When faced with the aggression of a tyrant, we must meet might with might. It is my very strong personal view on that.

We speak about sending solidarity but then an Irish MEP has said that if we send fuel, it should not be used in military vehicles. Tell that to the Ukrainians flattened by Russian tanks and air strikes. Tell that to the women and children of Ukraine who are being slaughtered in the streets as a result of Russian aggression. We should be sending them our Javelin missiles and not our solidarity. That is my very strong and deeply held belief.

The Tánaiste, Deputy Varadkar, has said it may not be a good idea to have knee-jerk reactions. We need to meet the occasion of the moment and send weapons to people who need them drastically in order to stop Putin and his Russian aggression. After that we must have an open debate. Neutrality is not sacrosanct or a sacred cow. We should not be afraid to debate such matters and we have debated some major issues in the past five or six years in this country that people fundamentally agreed or disagreed upon. The concept of Irish neutrality should not be a debate that is off the table or not discussed. Let us be mature about this and have the discussion. If the debate is lost, that is all well and good, but we should not shy away or be afraid of such a debate on Irish neutrality.