‘Got there in the end’ — Eamon Ryan under fire for Russia gaffe

1st March 2022

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Minister for the Environment Eamon Ryan has been slammed for making a gaffe where he repeatedly misnamed Russia.

Minister Ryan, leader of the Green Party, was attending the Emergency EU Energy Council, to discuss the future of oil and gas supplies after Russia invaded Ukraine last week.

The meeting called for work to be taken at all levels to put forward contingency plans on energy supplies, after strict sanctions placed on Russia means that the EU will not be buying gas and oil from the country — which accounts for roughly 40% of gas supplies in the bloc.

Speaking at the conference, Minister Ryan explained that Ireland need to stop buying gas from Russia during the ongoing invasion. However, in the interview,  he proceeded to call Russia the European Union, then the USSR (which disbanded over 30 years ago), then the Soviet Union.

‘The best way to take on [Russian President] Vladimir Putin is to stop buying imported oil, gas and coal from the European — from the USSR — from the Soviets — from Russia,’ Minister Ryan said.

The clip went viral on Twitter after it was released, with many people lampooning Minister Ryan for his gaffe.© Provided by Extra.ie Minister Ryan called Russia, who the European Union import 40% of their gas supply from, the European Union, then the USSR, then the Soviet Union, before landing on the correct term. Photograph: Aidan Crawley

‘[He] got there in the end,’ one user tweeted about the misquote. Other people found it funny, with another tweeting that Eamon Ryan ‘had to be an incredibly elaborate bit.’ Another said that it ‘was the funniest thing I’ve seen in a long time.’

Prior to the gaffe, Minister Ryan explained that Ireland was working in ‘close collaboration’ with fellow Green parties in the EU over the bloc’s reliance on fossil fuels.

‘I’ve had a meeting last night with some of our European Green colleagues in advance of the meeting,’ Minister Ryan said. ‘We’re working [in] close collaboration to try and address the underlying security risk which is also our reliance on imported fossil fuels.’

Elsewhere, 11 people were reportedly killed and dozens injured following a number of rockets and missiles barraged Ukraine’s second largest city of Kharkiv.