Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I did not think I would get the opportunity to say a few words, but I am very glad that I have. It is useful that there are a few minutes available. I thank the Minister of State for his opening remarks. This is a very important debate. It is very important that the nation and this Parliament stand with the people of Ukraine. I welcome again the ambassadors Larysa Gerasko and Marijus Gudynas from Ukraine and Lithuania. Maybe the only silver lining of everything is that we have got to know both of them much better because of the awful war that is going on.

Let us call the war what it is: the illegal invasion of a sovereign country in Europe. Ukraine is not even on the borders of Europe; it is in Europe. It is very hard to think it has been a full two years. It happened on a Wednesday night. I remember going out on a Thursday morning and met the ambassador at the time. The Polish ambassador Anna Sochaska, was also there, as was Marijus. Two years on, I think about the level of destruction and the loss of life. We know in this country how difficult it is to build a metro line, a children’s hospital, a school or a university. In that context, I think about the level of destruction in Ukraine, with whole towns and villages absolutely destroyed. Some 4 million Ukrainians have relocated to Poland. There are 100,000 Ukrainians here. A quarter of the population of 44 million has moved elsewhere.

We all know Ukraine much better than we did two years ago but for all the wrong reasons. It is a very large country and has a large population. The level of destruction caused by Russia and Putin has been absolutely horrific.What he has done to many of his own people, in sending them into the war, has not been good for them, but certainly for the people of Ukraine it has been enormously damaging.

We must also call out those other regimes that are helping. For example, drones are being sent from Iran to Ukraine. We must acknowledge that. We must also acknowledge that what is happening in Ukraine is a fight for Ukraine's survival but also for democracy. There are other former Soviet states that fear what is happening in Ukraine could happen to them. Other countries fear that too because Putin is not going to stop. If he thinks he can win this war, he will not stop there. I hope that never happens.

It is very important that we remember all of the damage, lives lost and destruction caused by Russia and nobody else, aided by some of its partners. It is horrific and shocking to think that two years on we have seen so much damage. Let us hope this war and illegal invasion are dealt with rapidly and brought to a conclusion and then we can go in, hold Russia to account and rebuild Ukraine for the benefit of everybody in Ukraine and the wider world.