Drones were spotted in Ireland as Volodymyr Zelensky landed in Dublin for an official visit earlier this week.
The Ukrainian president and his wife Olena flew to Ireland for a one-day trip on Monday night after which he secured £110 million for the war effort against Russia.
Police have now launched an investigation after crew on board the naval vessel LÉ William Butler Yeats detected unidentified drones flying near Howth around the same time.
Senior Irish government figures were briefed earlier this week about the presence of drones during their trip.
The Taoiseach (Irish prime minister), Micheál Martin, said the incident would be discussed at a National Security Council meeting later this month.
He said: ‘It’s been a feature now across Europe in more recent times the emergence of drones in the airspace of other colleagues in the European Union member states and we liaise and… we share experience.
‘Suffice to say that since the onset of the Ukrainian war there’s been heightened activity on the cyber security front, in terms of maritime issues and in terms of drones.’
Asked whether he was suggesting Russia was behind the drones, Martin said: ‘I’m not going to make any comment until we have a full review.’
The Irish Defence Forces previously said it had no comment on ‘the specifics of any alleged incidents’.
A spokesperson said: ‘Defence Forces support to the security operation, led by An Garda Síochána [Ireland’s national police] was successfully deployed in multiple means ultimately leading to a safe and successful visit by the President Zelensky to Ireland.’
Martin said it was an honour to host Zelensky and his wife in Ireland at a joint press conference earlier this week, adding that the country will continue to support Ukraine.
The prime minister added that Zelensky’s trip came at a ‘critical moment’ for Ukraine and Europe and that it underlined the value of ‘the friendship between Ukraine and Ireland’.
He said: ‘Our is a relationship built on shared values, freedom, democracy, the right of all states to determine their own future – values the people of Ukraine have sacrificed to defend and protect.’
Zelensky said Ireland was a ‘neutral’ but not ‘indifferent’ country, adding that he was ‘grateful’ for its support.
‘You are helping us and we appreciate it,’ he said.
‘Ireland’s interests really matter because it is the influence of a large global community.’
Announcing that the two countries had agreed a new five-year partnership, the Ukrainian president added that ‘we hope that during this period, Ukraine will become a member of the European Union’.
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