Member's statement: Ukraine War
Member's statement by Mr Gerry Carroll on .
- MLA
- Mr Gerry Carroll
- Party at the time
- People Before Profit Alliance
- Date
- 25 February 2025
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Ukraine War
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4814956
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Yesterday marked three years since the war in Ukraine began. The result has been devastation for ordinary Ukrainians and Russians, with hundreds of thousands killed and millions being forced out of their homes. War is futile and a colossal waste of human life. The resources that are spent on war could instead be funnelled into protecting people in this country from dying in their homes at wintertime because of the cut to the winter fuel payment. That is not to mention the extra money that could be funnelled into the health service to save and enhance lives rather than destroy them as has happened with the billions that have been pumped into keeping the war going. Keir Starmer has pumped at least £8 billion of military assistance into Ukraine whilst forcing people to freeze during this winter. There is always money for war, but when we demand money for services, we are told, "It is not available, sorry". Putin's actions were rightly condemned and called out across the board. We opposed the war and Putin's actions whilst others fell over themselves to welcome him to the G8 summit in Fermanagh and opposed a ceasefire every step of the way. Imagine that: they opposed a ceasefire every step of the way. They wanted other people to spill blood for the purpose of imperial rivalry and a carve-up. In the US, Donald Trump's recent manoeuvres are not necessarily pro-Russian, as they have been described. Like every other aspect of his Administration, they are ruthlessly pro-American and a direct expression of the current US grand strategy. They believe China to be the economic rival, and any way in which to undermine China and Russia is worth pursuing to the advantage of the US. Trump is demanding a £400 billion payback from Ukraine. In turn, the US will loot the country of its resources. It is the same as it ever was; Trump is just more aggressive and upfront about it. A leaked report to 'The Telegraph' has shown what motivates the US. It wants to set up a US-Ukraine investment fund, with 50% of the resources that are taken going directly to the US. A source close to the negotiations described one clause to mean:
"pay us first, and then feed your children".
That is the result of US and all imperial adventures. No doubt Biden or Harris would have tried something similar. What has been the result of the war? It has been carnage, death and destruction. We need to call out consistently the aggressive bullying and dominant role across the world that the US and its EU allies have planned regardless of current tensions between them. We should not paint Putin or anyone else who has their own empire as an alternative to the US. We need a world without empires and capitalism. NATO, which has been expanding exponentially from the 1990s right up to the present day, should be disbanded. It is an aggressive, offensive military organisation that causes death and destruction across the world, while Members to my right laugh at it.
Regrettably, countries across Europe have folded and dropped any pretence of military neutrality. Thankfully, in the South of Ireland, despite a deluge of propaganda that has been waged —
— a huge proportion of the public remains committed to neutrality.
553 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.14 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.97).
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.09 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.09 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.18 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.12 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.57 | No |
| Overall judgement | 0.14 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.97 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.01 |
| Adopts it | 0.02 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-related subject | 0.92 |
| Constitutional question, Brexit, the Windsor Framework and sovereignty | 0.05 |
| Another identity-related subject | 0.02 |
| Sectarianism, hate crime and community relations | 0.01 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:01 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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