On July 6, Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin arrived in Kyiv to express his support for the Ukrainian people.
Throughout the war, Ireland has supported Ukraine in resisting the invaders. The country’s representatives actively supported Ukraine’s aspirations to become a member of the European Union (EU) and expressed their readiness to be an advocate for Ukraine’s membership goal. Irish politicians are also seeking to galvanize support for recovery in Ukraine after the war.
Shortly after the war began, Ireland canceled visa requirements for all citizens of Ukraine and began offering asylum. This provides people with access to free education, medicine and the right to a job on the same terms as EU citizens.
On May 20, the speakers of the two Houses of the Irish Parliament visited Irpin and Bucha. And on June 1, the Senate officially recognized Russia’s actions in Ukraine as genocide.
Martin arrived in Kyiv to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss support for the Ukraine’s current and future needs.
The prime minister began his tour by visiting Borodianka, which was under Russian occupation earlier this year. There, Martin met with the mayor of the city and inspected the residential buildings burned during Russian bombings.
It is also reported that Martin was driven past Hostomel airport, where his column stopped to inspect the destroyed bridge. The delegation visited Irpin and Bucha, where they saw a mass grave and the photos of the bodies found after the retreat of the Russians from the city in the first weeks of the war.
“Bombings and attacks on civilians are nothing short of war crimes, and I will use my visit to express Ireland’s support for steps aimed at bringing those guilty to justice,” Martin said. He went on to emphasize that Ireland would support Ukraine amid Russia’s “immoral and unprovoked terroristic war.”
To that end, Ireland will continue to impose sanctions against Putin’s regime and will support Ukraine in every possible way on the path to full membership in the EU.
Meanwhile, the British government is taking the initiative of supplying new weapons, thus pushing the West to help Ukraine more actively in the fight against the Russian invaders. For example, to unblock Odesa’s ports, Britain supplied Harpoon anti-ship missiles as military aid.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, during his last visit to Ukraine on June 17, proposed a major program to train the Ukrainian military. This program will make it possible to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days.
In addition, Johnson said that if weapons of mass destruction were used, Britain would strike back without any consultation with NATO.
Britain continues to impose sanctions, including those against such figures as Putin’s mistress Alina Kabaeva and Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Kirill (Vladimir Gundyaev).
At the NATO summit on June 29 Johnson announced the provision of additional military aid from the U.K. worth $1.2 billion.
The British government regularly emphasizes that Ukraine must inflict such a defeat on Russia that it would not have offensive potential for another generation.
