Shaw JamesHon JAMES SHAW (Co-Leader—Green): Thank you Mr Speaker. Many years ago I had the privilege of working in the international headquarters of a student-run student exchange programme that was set up in the aftermath of World War II to promote peace and understanding between nations: l'Association internationale des étudiants en sciences économiques et commerciales. One of my closest friends there—one of my colleagues and flatmates—was Karina Luchinkina from Ukraine who was an extraordinary young woman of mixed Ukrainian and Russian heritage and I have been thinking about her and her family still in Ukraine and of the work that we did together to try and promote peace and understanding between nations a great deal in the recent days and weeks.In the horror of war it is ordinary people like Karina and her family who suffer the most. The people of Syria know this. The people of Yemen know this. The people of Iraq and Afghanistan know this. Our forebears and those who were involved in the wars of the 20th century know this. So to watch an unfolding and full-scale attack on the people of Ukraine was shocking. It was frightening and it was deeply depressing. The Green Party strongly condemns President Putin's extraordinary aggression and violence in the strongest terms. We call on Russia to immediately cease military action against the people of Ukraine and to engage in peace talks meaningfully. And our hearts do go out to the people of Ukraine today. New Zealand is a nation that has committed historically to human rights to non-violence and to cooperation at a global level. Multilateral rules-based order and diplomatic engagement are core pillars of New Zealand's independent foreign policy. What Russia has done cuts across all of that. It stands in stark opposition to peace sovereignty and freedom across the world. Our response must focus first and foremost on what we can do to help those that this war will hurt the most: the ordinary people who are caught in the waking nightmare. That we are already seeing hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians seeking refuge in other European States fleeing with little more than the clothes on their back leaving their homes their families their hopes and their dreams—the Green Party strongly supports the Government's focus on humanitarian aid to support Ukraine in the first instance. Whilst the preference of course is always for peace to prevail and for people to be able to return to their homes right now there are tens if not hundreds of thousands of people facing an uncertain future in overcrowded refugee camps along the border. The Green Party urges the Government to commit to supporting Ukrainian refugees in every way possible—be that through resettlement or through direct humanitarian support in Europe. That must extend to everybody in Ukraine regardless of their race or ethnicity including migrant workers and students. We also know that it is the political activists the journalists the human rights defenders and the rainbow community members who are more likely to be particular targets of the violence from Vladimir Putin's regime. Now is the moment for New Zealand to deliver on its historic commitment to human rights and to welcome Ukrainian people and their families with open arms. When it comes to diplomacy we support New Zealand's Ministers and officials doing all that they can to support efforts for peaceful de-escalation. The world must work together to resolve this conflict. The international institution that President John F Kennedy referred to as our last best hope for peace" the United Nations is imperfect by design. However we go forward we must ensure that we uphold the principles of human rights multilateralism and the international rules-based order. To this end we support the diplomatic efforts being made by the Hon Nanaia Mahuta and we wish her success however improbable in her work. We also support New Zealand making efforts where it can to mediate for peace amongst international partners. And as a long-term supporter of denuclearisation efforts New Zealand should continue to push for an end to the long shadow cast by the threat of nuclear conflict. Despite everything it has been heartening to see huge numbers of people in Europe and in Russia itself turn out in recent days to protest against the war. It does give me hope that we can yet find a way out of this conflict for the Ukrainian people. A world without war is possible but it does require enduring commitments by all nations to peace-building and diplomacy. New Zealand may only be a small nation but we must never lose focus on doing everything that we can to support peace. Nō reira tēnā koutou tēnā koutou tēnā tātou katoa."