Coveney tells Russian minister "don't bring Ireland into it' in justification for Ukraine invasion

Minister Simon Coveney has told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "don't bring Ireland" into their argument trying to justify an unjustifiable war.

Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov made comments in relation to Ireland during a press conference. 

"If in Ireland they prohibited the English language, what would the UK think about it?" Minister Lavrov said. 

Lavrov posed the scenario if Ireland was to suddenly prohibit the use of the English language, the UK wouldn't be impressed.

When he was asked about the potential banning of the Russian language in Ukraine, he responded: "President Zelenskiy, when he demanded that those people who think themselves part of the Russian culture [he said] – 'they should go away from Ukraine'.

"For example, if in Ireland, if they prohibited English language, what would the UK think about it?"

He also gave the example of Belgium and the French language.

"I can't imagine that a law like that would last for more than a couple of days or even hours," he added.

"But in the West, they only see it through the prism of their own egotistical interests," he said

Minister Coveney however and said Ireland and the UK are an example of how two countries, with a difficult past, found a way to shape and sustain a peace process