Taoiseach Leo Varadkar stung by Russian pranksters in hoax diplomatic call

A spokesperson said footage released by the Russian pranksters has been 'doctored and overdubbed in heavily-accented English' and that this did not represent what happened on the call.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is the latest in a string of world leaders to be stung by Russian pranksters in a hoax diplomatic call.

The prank on Mr Varadkar follows a series of calls with high-profile leaders, including Italian prime minister Georgia Meloni, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez and former leaders Angela Merkel and Boris Johnson.

The two pranksters, Vladimir Kuznetsov and Alexei Stolyarov, published the call on right-wing video website Rumble on Tuesday evening.

A spokesperson for the Taoiseach said he believed the call was taking place with African Union Commission diplomats.

“Earlier this year, the Taoiseach took part in a virtual meeting on the understanding it was with a representative of the African Union Commission. The Taoiseach ended the call early due to suspicions about its nature and the manner in which it was conducted. It transpired to be a sophisticated deep-fake.” 

The spokesperson added the footage released by the Russian pranksters has been “doctored and overdubbed in heavily-accented English” and that this did not represent what happened on the call.

They confirmed the Irish Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the African Union Commission and the National Cyber Security Centre have been notified.

Mr Kuznetsov and Mr Stolyarov, known as Vovan and Lexus, brought up topics like the invasion of Ukraine, Irish unification and neutrality.

Prank call

In the call, Mr Varadkar said Ireland did not intend to change its policy of neutrality and there were no plans to join Nato in the future.

“We don’t intend to change our position [on neutrality]. We’re not going to apply for Nato membership, we know that our neutrality doesn’t protect us the way it did in the past,” Mr Varadkar said.

He added the State had faced issues with Russian diplomats engaging in “unwelcome activities”, meaning there needed to be further cooperation with the EU.

When asked about Ukraine’s candidacy to join the EU, Mr Varadkar said it would likely take years for that process to be completed. File picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

“We’ve also had problems with Russian diplomats engaging in unwelcome activities, so we have to cooperate more with the European Union and we’re part of the Nato Partnership for Peace. But we’re not planning on joining Nato or becoming members of Nato.” 

Asked directly if he believed Irish neutrality would change, Mr Varadkar said: “I don’t think so, we’re members of the European Union and the eurozone. We use the same money as Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania.

“It would become a different question if Russia actually attacked Finland or Estonia or Latvia or Lithuania, but I really hope Putin won’t go that far. But that’s why it’s very important that he’s stopped in Ukraine.” When asked about Ukraine’s candidacy to join the EU, Mr Varadkar said it would likely take years for that process to be completed.

“We’ve accepted them as candidates to join the European Union, but those talks tend to take a long time because any country has to meet certain standards in terms of democracy, the justice system and the legal system and the economy before they can join.” 

He added Ireland took between 15 and 20 years to become a member of the bloc, adding Ukraine joining the EU soon is “not very likely”.

'Say hello to your leprechauns'

The pranksters also brought up Irish unification, with Mr Varadkar saying he hoped it would occur in his lifetime, but it was unlikely to happen during his term of office.

When they compared the potential unification of Ireland to the annexation of Crimea by Russia, Mr Varadkar rejected the comparison.

“Unification can only happen by peaceful means and by democratic consent. There can be no force, no guns, no armies and any vote has to be done fairly and freely,” the Taoiseach said.

On Ireland’s history with colonial powers, Mr Varadkar said “all nations” have the right to self-determination. He added states like Britain, France and America are arguably still colonial powers.

However, he related this back to the Russian invasion, saying: “What my mother used to say to me is that, ‘two wrongs don’t make a right’. So just because the British Empire, or the French Empire, or Napoleon, or Hitler did things that were wrong, it doesn’t make it okay for Putin to do things that are wrong or Russia to do so.” 

The hoaxers ended the call by asking Mr Varadkar to “say hello to your leprechauns”.