Paul Murphy urges debt relief for Ukraine, slams IMF objections
Paul Murphy asked the Taoiseach to back growing calls for debt relief for Ukraine, arguing that servicing debt is swallowing far more than Ireland's humanitarian aid. He warned that unless Ukraine's debt is cancelled, Irish aid risks being diverted to creditors rather than to victims of the war.
Scale of debt versus aid
Ireland has reportedly given around 20 million euros in humanitarian aid to Ukraine, while Ukraine is spending roughly 6 billion euros this year servicing debt - about 300 times that amount. Murphy noted that Ireland's contribution equates to less than 40 hours of servicing that debt.
Concerns about creditors and IMF-backed austerity
Murphy argued that unless debt is cancelled, the money will flow out to the IMF, the World Bank and other creditors instead of supporting victims of the conflict. He warned that previous experience shows how crippling such debts can be and highlighted the impact of IMF-backed austerity.
Reaction to government statements on debt relief
Murphy criticised the minister's argument that debt forgiveness would risk impairing the IMF's financial integrity, calling that position "clearly ridiculous." He pointed to statements in the US Congress backing suspension of debt service payments and debt relief as part of the growing international debate.
Engagement with the Ukrainian government and international partners
Murphy said he recently met the Prime Minister of Ukraine, who was travelling to Washington to meet the IMF and others about supporting current budgetary needs and post-war reconstruction. He said he would be guided by the Ukrainian government on how to progress discussions with the IMF, the World Bank and other institutions and stressed the need for strong international support - including from the G7, the European Union, the United States, Japan and Canada.
Calls for proactive aid deployment
The Prime Minister of Ukraine sought additional supports for a more proactive partnership on the ground for the deployment and disbursement of international aid, Murphy reported, emphasising the importance of coordination between donors and the Ukrainian government.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
Thanks, last count, Corle. Taoiseach, will you back the growing calls for debt relief for Ukraine? Even the US Congress has now backed calls for suspending all debt service payments by Ukraine and for debt relief. Ireland has reportedly given around 20 million euros in humanitarian aid to Ukraine, but they are spending 300 times that amount this year just servicing their odious debt, 6 billion euros. That means that all of our humanitarian aid amounts to less than 40 hours of servicing that debt. Unless the debt is cancelled, the money is really just going back out the door to the IMF, the World Bank and others, rather than actually supporting the victims of this brutal war. We have seen for ourselves how crippling these debts can be and the impact of IMF-backed austerity. But Minister Coveney so far has said that debt forgiveness risks impairing the IMF's financial integrity as if the IMF is about to go bankrupt. Clearly ridiculous. Senator Bob Rennie. Would you support debt relief? Mr Murphie. I met with the Prime Minister of Ukraine recently in Shannon. He did not ask me for a declaration of support for debt relief. He did indicate to me he was travelling to Washington to meet with the IMF and to meet with various organisations around how one would support both the current budgetary needs of the Ukrainian government, but also then obviously the reconstruction effort in the event of the war coming to an end. So I will very much be guided by the Ukrainian government in respect of how they want to progress this in working with bodies such as the IMF, the World Development Bank and others in terms of making sure that there was a strong international support for Ukraine, very strong international support from the G7, from the European Union, from the United States, Japan, Canada and many others. I have no doubt that that will continue and I have no doubt that phase by phase throughout this war that that will continue. The Prime Minister did seek some additional supports around the international aid that is flowing in that there would be a more proactive partnership with the Ukrainian government on the ground in terms of the deployment of those resources and the disbursement of those resources.
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
