Taoiseach pays tribute to 'resilience' of Ukrainians after returning from visit

As of Thursday, 347 children had died and an additional 646 had been injured in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Micheál Martin hailed the people of Ukraine who had shown extraordinary determination. File photo: Niall Carson/PA

The Taoiseach said his trip to Ukraine was very emotional, recalling seeing pictures of children who had been killed in the war.

Micheál Martin travelled to Kyiv and Bucha on Wednesday at the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to witness the devastation of Putin’s invasion of the country.

Micheál Martin hailed the people of Ukraine who had shown extraordinary determination.

“That, to me demonstrated extraordinary resilience on behalf of the people of Ukraine, and then the needless atrocities and deaths of children," he said.

“We went to the museum where all the pictures of children who were killed murdered in this war are, it’s very hard to comprehend for any man to start a war, which would lead to the deaths of so many children.” 

Almost 1,000 children have been killed or injured in Ukraine since Russian forces invaded the country in February, Ukrainian prosecutors said in a statement Thursday.

As of Thursday, 347 children had died and an additional 646 had been injured. The most casualties have occurred in the Donetsk region.

The figures are preliminary because the fighting has not ended and some parts of the country remain under Russian occupation, they said.