The visit of the Prime Minister of Ireland is not just a visit of solidarity, it is a visit of great support
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk met with the Prime Minister of Ireland Leo Varadkar, who is currently on a visit to Ukraine.
At the beginning of the meeting, Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed that “this is not just a visit of solidarity, it is a visit of great support”. He sincerely thanked the people and authorities of Ireland for the invaluable assistance that the country provides to our country during the unprovoked war with russia.
“We greatly appreciate the assistance we receive from Ireland, in particular, financial and humanitarian. But the most valuable for us is the assistance received by tens of thousands of Ukrainians who are currently in Ireland,” the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament stressed.
During the conversation, the parties also touched upon several issues important for Ukraine in its fight against the aggressor: sanctions pressure on russia, justice and bringing russia to justice, Ukraine’s European integration, and interparliamentary cooperation.
The Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament urged his Irish colleague to continue sanctions pressure on russia together with our partners, where it is particularly important to prevent any attempts by russia to ‘circumvent’ the sanctions already in place.
Ruslan Stefanchuk also stressed that the issue of justice is very important for Ukrainians.
“Holding russia accountable under international law is one of our priorities. That is why it is important to establish a special tribunal for the crime of russian aggression against Ukraine, so that russia, as a party that is fully responsible for this war, receives a verdict from internationally recognised institutions,” the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine said.
The interlocutors also touched upon the issue of Ukraine’s European integration. In particular, Ruslan Stefanchuk thanked Ireland for supporting our path to full EU membership and stressed the importance of starting negotiations on accession to the European Union this year.
In conclusion, Ruslan Stefanchuk extended an invitation to the representatives of the Irish Parliament to take part in the Second Parliamentary Summit of the International Crimean Platform in Prague this year.
The Prime Minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar, for his part, expressed the solidarity of the people of Ireland and the Government of Ireland with the Ukrainian people.
“You are fighting for European values. And we also firmly believe that in the 21st century, state borders cannot be changed by force through invasion and someone’s wishes. That is why it is very important that Ukraine wins this war so that this does not happen again in other countries,” said Leo Varadkar.
He also assured his Ukrainian counterpart that Ireland would continue to provide assistance to Ukraine, primarily financial and humanitarian.