LAST UPDATE | 19 Jul 2023
TAOISEACH LEO VARADKAR has told a Ukrainian actor in Kyiv who was assaulted in Dublin last month that he is “sorry for what happened”.
The Taoiseach is in Ukraine today where he visited the massacre site at Bucha and also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Oleksandr Hrekov was attacked in Dublin city centre shortly after performing at the city’s Abbey Theatre. He was part of a Kyiv theatre company that had travelled to Dublin to put on a production of Translations by Irish playwright Brian Friel.
The actor required stitches in hospital after what the Abbey called an “unprovoked, random act of mindless violence”.
Varadkar visited the Lesya Ukrainka National Academic Drama Theatre company today, which performed a song before presenting him with a copy of Translations signed by the cast.
Varadkar then spoke to Hrekov, shaking his hand and enquiring about his well-being since the assault.
He asked if the actor was doing okay, to which Hrekov replied, through a translator: “Yes, everything is fine, everything is perfect.”
The Taoiseach said: “I’m sorry for what happened. Dublin is my home town, but sometimes not 100% safe, unfortunately.”
The young actor’s reply was: “All places are like that.”
In his meeting with Zelenskyy, Varadkar gave his commitment to the people of Ukraine that Ireland will “continue to offer our practical as well as our political backing”.
“We are giving a further €5 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine – €3 million to be spent in Ukraine by the Red Cross for its vital work, and €2 million to the UN fund,” Varadkar said in a statement today.
Bucha, now free and safe, remains a poignant reminder of the civilian massacre committed by the Russian military. Honored the memory of the victims with the Prime Minister of Ireland @LeoVaradkar.
— Andriy Kostin (@AndriyKostinUa) July 19, 2023
Over 1,400 peaceful people were killed in the Bucha district, and many more were… pic.twitter.com/CXIkwEBPvT
During his visit to Bucha, the Taoiseach met with Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin, who confirmed the visit on Twitter.
Kostin said: “Bucha, now free and safe, remains a poignant reminder of the civilian massacre committed by the Russian military. Honored the memory of the victims with the Prime Minister of Ireland.”
Russian troops are accused of massacring civilians in the quiet commuter town of Bucha, which they occupied for more than a month in early 2022.
The charred carcasses of military vehicles littered the streets after Russian troops withdrew on 31 March 2022, having failed to take the capital Kyiv.
The Taoiseach made the surprise visit today after he attended an EU Summit in Brussels this week.
A statement from the Irish government said the Taoiseach is in Ukraine today to meet with Zelenskyy, pledge solidarity with the people of Ukraine, and to bear witness to the effects of Russia’s invasion at first hand.
This morning the Taoiseach visited towns and villages around Kyiv to meet with communities and hear first-hand the accounts of the death and destruction wrought by Russian forces.
Following his meeting with Zelenksyy, Varadkar held further political engagements in the capital, beginning with Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.
He has also visited the Verkhovna Rada parliament where he met with its chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk.
The Taoiseach then went to the National Museum of the History of Ukraine where he paused to view the striking Ukrainian Motherland Monument.
The Taoiseach is today announcing an additional €5 million in humanitarian funding to help with the ongoing emergency response and the attack on the Kakhovka dam.
This afternoon he laid wreaths in memory of the children killed in the conflict, in memory of those killed in the Euromaidan protests of 2014, and in the Russian invasion that followed.
Travelling with @LeoVaradkar in Kyiv today as he visited sites that still bear the scars of the Russian offensive to capture the Ukrainian capital in the early weeks of the war.@PA pic.twitter.com/A4UOqOYPAz
— David Young (@DavidYoungPA) July 19, 2023
Speaking from Kyiv, the Taoiseach said:
“I am here to express Ireland’s solidarity with the Government and the people of Ukraine as they endure more than 500 days of Russian attacks. Ireland’s commitment to Ukraine means that we will support them on their pathway to EU membership.
“We will work with international partners to ensure that those responsible for this crime of aggression are held accountable, and we will work with Ukraine to restore essential civilian infrastructure to meet their needs today and in the future when they have prevailed.”
Varadkar said there was strong support for Ukraine at the EU-CELAC summit in Brussels this week .
“This is the 21st century, national borders cannot be changed through violence, and democratically elected Governments should not be overthrown by foreign invasion. We have to draw a line in the sand here and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes,” said Varadkar.
Welcome to Ukraine, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar @LeoVaradkar. Today, we will hold important negotiations - security, political cooperation, justice for Ukraine and our economic cooperation.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 19, 2023
Although Ireland is a neutral country, this neutrality does not mean indifference, and this is… pic.twitter.com/qzxvkXw7uV
Zelenskyy has thanked the people of Ireland for taking in thousands of Ukrainian refugees since the Russian invasion.
Speaking as he met with Varadkar, Zelenskyy said that although Ireland was a neutral country, it did not mean they were not helping Ukraine and that he was “very grateful” the Taoiseach began his visit in Kyiv’s conflict-hit suburbs of Moschun, Irpin and Bucha.
“You have seen with your own eyes the consequences of the war, the consequences of Russia’s aggression,” he said.
“I, first of all, would like to extend words of gratitude to you and to the whole people of Ireland for hosting our nationals in Ireland, this is a significant moral support to our nation.
“You’ve hosted 86,000 Ukrainian citizens, you’ve provided them with accommodation, with funding, with access to education and health support, this is very important.”
Zelensky said that he informed Varadkar about the recent Russian attacks on its port cities, including Odesa.
He said Russia was targeting residential areas and food infrastructure, which he said were not only attacks on Ukraine but on “global stability”.
“It’s important that every country of the world which is striving for peace, for normal life, on all continents, it’s important for them to condemn the Russian terror and participate in common efforts to overcome this aggression.
“Ireland is participating in such common efforts.”
He said that negotiations with Ireland today had been “fruitful for both of the countries”.
He thanked Ireland for donating €180 million worth of non-lethal support and for supporting its de-mining process.
Zelenskyy outlined ways that Ireland can do more to support Ukraine, including providing more de-mining equipment and on using diplomacy to encourage support for Ukraine.
He also said Ireland offering to take the lead on setting up a special international tribunal was “a significant help” as the measure is seen as controversial by some countries.
He said he would also be asking the Taoiseach to use Ireland’s good relationships with African countries to support Ukraine.
Varadkar told reporters in Kyiv today that Ireland has been “among the strongest supporters in the European Union of tough sanctions against Russia, and indeed against Belarus, and we’re among the strongest supporters of Ukraine becoming a candidate country for EU membership, and the next step – which we believe should happen before the end of the year – is the opening of negotiations so that Ukraine can continue on its European path”.
“One thing that President Zelenskyy said to me which really struck me is that move can really help build morale for soldiers who are fighting on the ground, on the front line, to know that they’re fighting for a European future, but that Europe believes that is their future too. That’s something I’ll definitely take back to my colleagues.”
In July of last year, Micheál Martin paid a visit to the Ukrainian capital when he was Taoiseach. Martin held talks with Zelensky, who thanked Ireland for its support.
At the time, Martin restated Irish solidarity with Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.
With reporting by Press Association
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