Gerard P. Craughwell backs UCD trauma aid, seeks €558,000 ring-fence

Thank you very much, Luska Herrlich Minister. Welcome to the House. I think this is the first time I addressed you since you returned after the last election and congratulations on taking the foreign affairs, trade and defence portfolio. Minister, today marks the fourth anniversary of Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine and over 12 years since Russia invaded the Crimea Peninsula. I am here today to speak about the work of the UCD Ukraine Trauma Project, an Irish initiative that is saving lives every single day in Ukraine, often within minutes of injury and sometimes within seconds. The key point here is time is of the essence when it comes to injuries. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale illegal invasion of Ukraine, one of the greatest challenges facing Ukrainian medics has been the management of severe bleeding and major trauma. This is the leading cause of preventable death in this conflict. The techniques and equipment required for advanced temperature control is access to the very early administration of Tranexmic acid or TXA. Sadly, TXA remains very limited or unavailable in many parts of Ukraine. Where TXA is administered quickly, it can reduce mortality by 10 to 25 percent. This is not a statistic, it's a human being alive, because the right intervention happened at the right moment. In response to this need, volunteer advanced paramedics and doctors from the Irish Health Service, led by Professor Chris Fitzpatrick and Professor Gerberi, both sitting in the VIP gallery today, have travelled to the Ukraine since November 2022, sharing their expertise through intensive two-day training courses. These frontline clinicians, people who finished a shift in an Irish emergency department or an ambulance service and then gave their own time at personal risk to support Ukrainian colleagues working under bombardment. To date, across nine training missions, the UCD Ukraine Trauma Project has trained more than 650 pre-hospital emergency responders – doctors, dentists, nurses, vets, academic instructors and paramedics – from every frontline agency in Ukraine. Alongside this training, they have delivered over 1,700 advanced trauma kits, each one containing tools needed to stop catastrophic bleeding and administer TXA in the field. The work does not stop, sorry, the work does not replace Ukrainian expertise, it reinforces and enhances it. The feedback received is clear and humbling. The skills they teach are being used frequently and the equipment provided is saving lives. Demand for places on their courses now far exceeds the capacity to deliver them. Looking ahead, these wonderful people plan two missions in 2026, delivering six two-day courses to an additional 300 providers. That will mean 300 additional medics fighting to save the lives of brave Ukrainian forces. The project costs of this work is 558,000 and they have submitted a detailed proposal to your department, the Department of Foreign Affairs. They assure me that they remain deeply grateful to your department, to the Irish public, the HSE and the Red Cross, whose generosity channeled through the UCD Foundation has made every mission to date possible. In December 2025, volunteers were honoured beyond measures when President Vladimir Zelensky and First Lady Miss Olena Zelensky recognised the project during their visit to Dublin. Dr. Lumilia Zakharachenko, Professor Chris Fitzpatrick and Professor Gerard Burry accepted awards on behalf of more than 50 volunteers at that meeting. And again in his public remarks, President Zelensky asked them to continue and if possible to increase their efforts. They intend to honour that request. Their programme is evidence-based and continually evolving. They are now developing new methodologies for delivering TXA that it is believed will significantly broaden its availability and impact across Ukraine. The rollout of this innovation will form a central part of their 2026 mission. Minister, Ireland has always stood with those who suffer the consequence of war, displacement and injustice. The UCD Ukraine trauma project is a uniquely Irish contribution practical, compassionate and rooted in our national tradition of medical excellence and humanitarian solidarity. Your support is invaluable to them. I'd ask you Minister to ring fence the 558,000 from all humanitarian aid that you intend to provide to Ukraine so that this project can go ahead. I look forward to keeping you updated on the progress and many hope for the successful delivery of the key elements in 2026. One thing I should say, Minister, is that it's not just soldiers now. Civilians are being murdered miles away from the front line. Civilians are suffering trauma. Thank you. Thank you, Minister. The quickest six minutes ever. Thank you, Cahirlach. And indeed, thank you, Senator Crockwell, for raising this topic. And can I too acknowledge Chris and Gerro in the gallery today. You raised this topic, as you said, on a particularly somber day. And I think we're all finding it hard to imagine that it's four years on since the very first day of Russia's absolutely brutal and illegal and barbaric war, one that has waged and that is increasing in its scale and volume. Since February 22, in addition to military attacks, Russia has targeted Ukrainian energy, transport facilities, hospitals, schools, all with the intention of trying to break the spirit of the Ukrainian people and indeed trying to break the spirit of the EU and the European citizens as a whole. We've seen hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians killed, indeed their own soldiers that they are sending to the slaughter. Millions of people have now been left without heat and power in freezing winter weathers, minus 24, 25 degree temperatures. But I think what we can all see is that the Ukrainian people and their spirit has not been broken. Neither has our commitment to support them. And can I say that just this week, only yesterday, I spoke with the Foreign Minister, André Sibby. Last week, I had an opportunity to meet and to speak with their Defence Minister, Michalow. And just recently at the Munich Security Conference, I met with soldiers who were on the front line and who had taken time to come and to relay exactly what is happening to them. And at every step of the way, I have relayed Ireland's continued and absolute support for Ukraine and the reaffirming that we will support them for as long as necessary. And I know that the Irish people support this also. I have also conveyed the need for the EU as a whole to remain absolutely steadfast in our support for Ukraine, but also in our pressure that needs to continue to be placed on Russia. I want to acknowledge and welcome ongoing efforts to end Russia's war of aggression, the efforts made by the US, by the EU and many others as well to achieve a just and lasting peace for Ukraine. We will do this as an EU member state and through our participation of the Coalition of the Willing of which the Taoiseach participated in this morning. Russia's response to peace efforts to date has been to continue its missile attacks, to intensify the number of soldiers that it is quite literally sending to the slaughter, to attack civilian infrastructure and towns, resulting in casualties and increased suffering. Russia can stop this at any time. They choose not to, they choose the path that they've taken and what this means is that there are more and more civilians who are suffering. And so in bringing this topic to the Shannon today, you've highlighted and given me an opportunity to highlight the response, not just from a government perspective, but also thankfully to highlight the huge amount of work that our own citizens are doing and so much of it unseen and unheard of. And I'm pleased to say this is not the first time I'm hearing of this project and I do really want to commend the absolutely invaluable work that has been done by both Chris, by Gerber and all of those involved in the UCD Ukraine trauma project. The valuable work to train pre-hospital civilian and military first responders is a further manifestation of the solidarity that I've spoken up. The project is quite literally saving lives. Indeed, again, as you've referenced, President Zelensky and First Lady Olena Zelensky honoured the project's success with a Golden Heart award during his visit and her visit to Ireland just last December. And I want to take this opportunity again to congratulate the work that's been done. 650 plus people trained, nine missions, and we will assure you many more missions to come for as long as they're needed. 1,700 advanced kits. All of this work is literally saving lives at my direction. Recently, officials at the Department of Education and Foreign Affairs and Trade have been engaging directly with the UCD Ukraine trauma project to discuss the work plan for 2026. And what we've been doing is trying to examine how best we can help. Ukraine continues to experience the tremendous levels of need. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates that 10.8 million people will require humanitarian assistance. And so the work of this project, the need for this project, as I've said, is absolutely essential. The most recent updated joint rapid damage and needs assessment estimates that at the end of 2025, the total cost of reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine is almost $588 billion. So however we can help, be it in our humanitarian assistance, be it in our direct funding for critical infrastructure, be it in the funding we've been provided for defence spending, or be it in the funding that we need to provide for these types of projects, we will continue to provide that support and that help. So you will appreciate, Senator, and indeed I know both gentlemen will appreciate that when we are providing this level of assistance, and particularly directing it through our Office of Development, we have to ensure that all the projects go through the in-depth analysis, and that we go through that engagement. That's part of the process to make sure that the money goes exactly where it's needed to. But I can assure you that we will engage closely with the UCD Ukraine Trauma Centre, along with our partners on their work, and make sure that we can continue this essential work. Thank you. Thank you very much for a very comprehensive response. I'm extremely proud of Ireland and the Irish people for what we've done for Ukraine. But the basis of all humanitarian aid has to start with the preservation of human life. And human life can be saved. We see there the statistics are quite stark, between 10 and 25% mortality catered for. The essence here is to get this project up and running again. The 558,000 out of the monies that we're allocating to Ukraine, I would implore you to ring fence that for this project, because it's delivering real results on the ground. And the preservation of life is what it's all about. And now it's no longer just soldiers. It is innocent, through Putin's war crimes, it is innocent civilians that are being killed in Kiev, Donask and various other parts of Ukraine. So if you can do that, Minister, I would truly appreciate it. Thank you. Just again to conclude and to acknowledge the excellent work that has been done through the project. This is really a perfect example of how literally, quite literally, civilians and citizens here in Ireland have come together to provide support. We know there's a huge amount happening. Beyond this, as well, there's over 100,000 Ukrainian citizens are living in Ireland, they're in our communities, our towns and our villages. And so while we might be geographically the furthest from Ukraine and where this war is happening, I think for all of us, our hearts are very much connected to what is happening on the ground. And I think that's why you see these types of responses. That's why you see those with such experience, who want to give back, who want to provide this support and help. From my perspective, as Minister within the Department, where I can provide financial assistance to allow that to continue, that's something that I absolutely want to do. So I will continue and my Department will continue to engage with the project in supporting them and helping them to deliver this essential and, as you've said, life-saving support on the ground. Thanks, Minister. Thanks. Thanks. So next we have that. That's your finish, aren't you?