Sabina Higgins

A published letter written by Ireland's First Lady Sabina Higgins which came under criticism appears to have been removed from the President of Ireland's ...

We’re all against war.” She’s against war. In the letter, Ms Higgins wrote that she was “disappointed and dismayed” that an editorial in the newspaper didn’t “encourage any ceasefire negotiations that might lead towards a peace settlement between the Russians, the Ukrainian forces and the separatists.”

President Michael D Higgins' wife Sabina has been criticised for comments she made on the war in Ukraine, which were described as 'inappropriate, unhelpful.

'I would caution against telling a country who has been invaded that they must make every effort for peace when it wasn't they who instigated the war. She made no reference to who was the aggressor. The fact that the Russian Ambassador is praising her letter is a testament to how inappropriate, unhelpful and distasteful this intervention was. 'Sabina Higgins is a longtime committed anti-war activist in her own right and that should be respected,' he said. 'Her views are entirely out of touch with those of Irish people and interventions like this are seen as a tacit endorsement of the Russian regime. Mr Filatov's words led to further criticism of Mrs Higgins' comments.

Fianna Fáil senator says the decision to publish Sabina Higgins' letter on the President's site 'raises serious questions'

Other critics included Kateryna Yushchenko, former First Lady of Ukraine from 2005 to 2010, who said in a tweet on Friday: “I recommend, Mrs Higgins, not weighing in on something you obviously know nothing about. The Irish Times sought a comment from the Áras both on Friday night, and again on Saturday, about the apparent removal of the letter but has received no response. In her letter, Mrs Higgins said the war in Ukraine would continue until both countries agreed a ceasefire and entered negotiations.

Sabina Higgins, in a letter to the Irish Times, called for both Ukraine and Russia to “agree to a ceasefire and negotiations”.

Fine Gael senator John McGahon tweeted a screenshot of the letter posted on the presidential website. “It is incumbent on the President of Ireland to now express clearly the strong support of the people of Ireland for the people of Ukraine and that we hold Russia responsible for the war and ongoing barbarism.” It has since been removed but McGahon said it was “inappropriate” for the letter to be published on the website. In a letter to the Irish Times on Wednesday, Sabina Higgins wrote that the war will continue “until the world persuades President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine to agree to a ceasefire and negotiations”. A Ukrainian MP, however, called the letter “underinformed” and said “it is not enough for one side to want peace – it needs to be mutual”. A FIANNA FÁIL senator has called on Michael D Higgins to make a public statement to “express clearly” the Irish support for Ukraine following viewpoints in a letter by Sabina Higgins that the Russian Ambassador said “makes sense”.

Malcolm Byrne called on President Michael D Higgins to publicly outline Ireland's continued support for Ukraine.

“Your editorial states that in the war it is estimated that 25,000 to 27,000 Russians have been killed in the fighting. This is surely a moment of moral choice. Ireland should rightly be proud of our response to the invasion of Ukraine.”