Taoiseach Micheál Martin is on his way to Brussels to take part in the final EU summit before Ireland takes over the presidency of the Council of the European Union in July.
Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy is expected to join EU leaders later this afternoon to give an update on the war.
Overnight Ukrainian military drones struck a major oil refinery in Moscow as part of a large-scale attack.
Meanwhile, at the front, Ukraine is more upbeat about its defences despite slow Russian advance.
The Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, said Russia was suffering a causalty rate of between 30,000 to 35,000 per month.
The Taoiseach said that during Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union, continued support for Ukraine will be a priority.
“The people of Ukraine have endured more than four years of brutal Russian aggression. Actions to maintain political, financial, military and humanitarian support for Ukraine, while keeping pressure on Russia, including through sanctions, will be reflected in our work across a number of strands,” Micheál Martin said.
“I welcome the opening of Cluster 1 on Fundamentals with Ukraine and Moldova [the first negotiations in the accession process to join the European Union], and the Irish Presidency will aim to facilitate the opening of all remaining clusters. EU accession is a crucial element in securing Ukraine’s longer-term security and prosperity.”
The EU summit is expected to continue into Friday when leaders will talk about the future long term EU budget and also the war in the Middle East.
US President, Donald Trump, has signed the outline of a peace agreement with Iran, but many questions remain unanswered.
For the EU, there is particular concern about the future of Iran’s nuclear capabilities and about freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We hope there can now be a full engagement by all involved to implement this agreement and achieve peace and stability across the region,” said the Taoiseach.
“Re-opening the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping would bring much-needed relief to the global economy.”
There are also questions over Israel which has been attacking Lebanon. And also what will happen in the West Bank and Gaza.
“The current situation across the Middle East remains grim”, said Micheál Martin
“At this meeting, I will push again for concrete EU action in response to egregious Israeli breaches of human rights and democratic principles,” he said.
On Monday, EU foreign ministers tasked the European Commission with putting together options for how to meaningfully condemn Israel’s action beyond strong words.
One senior EU diplomat said this would include the possibility of banning trade with Israel’s illegal settlements and sanctioning extremist ministers in the Israeli government.
We don’t want to punish Israel, he said, but “we expect Israel to change its course and its behaviour.”