Confrontation and violence seem to be escalating worldwide. No lesser person than the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, has warned we could be heading towards "a wider war". He also said that the prospects for peace keep diminishing and that he fears the world is not sleepwalking into a wider war, stating, "I feel it is doing so with its eyes wide open." He noted that scientists and security experts had moved the doomsday clock to just 90 seconds to midnight last month, and concluded: "We have started 2023 staring down the barrel of a confluence of challenges unlike any in our lifetimes." What is the Government doing to de-escalate confrontation and violence and to promote dialogue in both the United Nations and in the European Community?

I thank the Deputy. I heard the Secretary General's words and I share the concerns about the escalating conflicts around the world, not just in Ukraine but also elsewhere. The doomsday clock has been around approximately 70 years now and it has always been at 20 minutes to midnight. I would bear that in mind too. I know it is three or four seconds now but when something has been 20 minutes or less from midnight for 70 years, in fairness one starts to wonder about the clock. Leaving that aside, the serious point the Deputy raises is valid. We do what we can do at European and UN level to make the case for peace but a peace has to be a just peace. I know the Deputy did not specifically raise the issue of Ukraine but when it comes to these conflicts, the aggressors need to stop and that it is the focus we have at EU and UN level.