Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney will brief the UN Security Council on his visit to Ukraine.
The Foreign Affairs Minister is in New York where he will address a meeting of the council this evening which will focus on the plight of refugees fleeing the invasion.
Last Thursday, Minister Coveney became the first foreign minister from a state on the Security Council to visit Kyiv since the start of the war.
Mr Coveney visited Bucha on the outskirts of Kyiv last week where mass civilian graves were found and pledged to Ukrainian politicians that Ireland would use its voice on the UN Security Council to call on Russia to remove troops and declare a ceasefire.
Mr Coveney said: “The Ukrainian people need and deserve full accountability for the atrocities that continue to be uncovered daily. I will be using Ireland’s voice at the security council to emphasise this. I will also be raising our grave concerns that we are facing into renewed Russian attacks in the east of Ukraine, with hundreds of thousands of lives at stake.”
He added: “This madness can stop today if Russia agrees to an immediate ceasefire, a withdrawal to pre-February 24th positions and a commitment to a dialogue. I commend Turkey’s efforts in hosting talks between the parties in Istanbul and urge all UN member states to support diplomatic efforts."
The minister being accompanied by a Garda protection team on his trip to Ukraine was against security protocols and a "kick in the gut" for the Defence Forces, according to a TD.
Mr Coveney travelled to Poland on a Defence Forces plane while he was accompanied to the Ukrainian border by Polish military personnel, before being escorted by Ukrainian special forces and a close protection team from the Garda Emergency Response Unit.
Cathal Berry, a former deputy commander of the Army Ranger Wing, told BreakingNews.ie: "It’s against so many security protocols, the guards are excellent at what they do, but their role is to protect the public, fight crime, bring people before the courts, secure convictions. The military looks after security, particularly abroad and particularly in a war fighting scenario."
Mr Berry also called the decision a "betrayal" of the Defence Forces.
