Simon Harris has said the world cannot afford to wait another two to three weeks for de-escalation in the Iran war.
Speaking alongside Micheál Martin, both leaders were responding to comments by Donald Trump suggesting the conflict could end within that timeframe, reports Breaking News.
Mr Harris said the war has already lasted around 33 days and highlighted the severe damage done to global energy infrastructure during that period.
“We don’t have another 21 days, or thereabouts, to see de-escalation.
“We’re already living through the largest energy crisis in the history of the world, bigger than the last three combined.”, reports Breaking News.
He said that while a few weeks may seem short, the consequences for the global economy and humanitarian conditions would be extremely serious.
Mr Martin also said a two to three week timeline would be “too long” given the level of instability, reports Breaking News.
“The sooner this ends, I think, the sooner we see de-escalation across the region, then the greater the prospect of restoring some degree of normality, although it will take a considerable degree of time.”,
Asked about rising fuel prices despite recent excise duty cuts, Mr Harris said he believes the reductions have been passed on to consumers.
He said prices remain lower than they would have been without the measures, reports Breaking News.
“So imagine how much higher they would have been had those measures not been put in place, so I do believe they were the right measures to take.”, reports Breaking News.
Mr Martin described the situation as “very, very volatile” and said ending the war is the only guaranteed way to stabilise prices, reports Breaking News.
Mr Harris also said the European Commission is preparing guidance and a potential “toolkit” of practical measures for the public, expected next week.
When asked about possible advice such as working from home, he said any measures would depend on how long the conflict continues, reports Breaking News.
He noted that steps similar to those taken during the Ukraine crisis — such as reducing lighting on public buildings — are under consideration.
Mr Harris said the Government is pushing for the conflict to end as quickly as possible, reports Breaking News.
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