Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy will be in Dublin on Tuesday amid ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the war that has been raging since the Russian invasion of his country almost four years ago.
Mr Zelenskiy is due to meet Taoiseach Micheál Martin as well as pay a courtesy call to President Catherine Connolly during series of engagements on Tuesday, including the inauguration of a new Ireland-Ukraine Economic forum to explore business links.
While plans are yet to be finalised, there is also a possibility that Mr Zelenskiy will deliver an address to the Houses of the Oireachtas.
The Republic has offered political and non-lethal military support to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in 2022.
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More than 120,000 Ukrainian nationals fleeing the war have been granted temporary refugee status here.
Mr Martin said Mr Zelenskiy’s visit “comes at a critical time for Ukraine and Europe, with efforts to bring just and lasting peace to Ukraine ongoing.”
He added: “I look forward to discussing with President Zelenskiy the ways in which Ireland can support these efforts and how we can ensure that Ukraine comes to the negotiating table in as strong a position as possible.”
On Sunday, a Ukrainian delegation met officials from US president Donald Trump’s administration as diplomatic efforts continue to end the war.
The negotiations come at a sensitive moment for Ukraine as it continues to push back against Russian forces while dealing with a domestic corruption controversy.
Diplomats have been focused on revisions to a proposed 28-point plan developed in negotiations between Washington and Moscow. That plan has been criticised as being too weighted toward Russian demands.
As the meeting began on Sunday, US secretary of state Marco Rubio made remarks apparently aimed at reassuring Ukraine.
“The end goal, obviously, is not just the end of the war,” he said. “But it’s also about securing an end to the war that leaves Ukraine sovereign and independent and with an opportunity at real prosperity.”
Mr Trump has flagged the possibility that he would send special envoy Steve Witkoff to Moscow this week to meet Russian president Valdimir Putin about the plan.
French president Emmanuel Macron is due to host Mr Zelenskiy for talks in Paris on Monday.
While Mr Zelenskiy has made stop-offs at Shannon Airport, his trip to Dublin along with his wife Olena Zelenska, will be the first official visit to Ireland by a president and first lady of Ukraine. The Taoiseach said it is “an honour” to welcome them.
He said the people of Ukraine “continue to endure the nightly onslaught of Russian missiles and drones on their cities” and their defence forces “continue to defend their homeland with remarkable tenacity.”
Mr Martin said he looks forward to “reiterating Ireland’s unswerving commitment to standing with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes”; discussing how Ireland can assist in accelerating Ukraine’s journey towards EU membership; and “how we can work together to achieve a just and lasting peace for the people of Ukraine”. – Additional reporting: AP
