As the invasion of Ukraine unfolds, Northumberland Labour stands firm in support of the people of Ukraine.

Leader Scott Dickinson said: “The atrocities we’re seeing on the TV are absolutely tragic. Seeing that, you can totally understand why Ukraine wanted to become a member of NATO because it would have offered it protection from its powerful and dangerous neighbour.

“Forcing families to split up and leave the country while other stay to fight is nothing we could imagine in the modern world. The formation of the European Union after World War II was to bring stability and peace to a previously war torn continent and it succeeded in that aim. It is tragic to see Ukraine, which is stuck in the middle of Russia and the EU, being made to pay the price of being alone without the protection it needs to enable Ukrainian people to live freely and independently.

“There is strong evidence that Russian people themselves are not in favour of this invasion, though they are also being kept in the dark because the media is state run and the word ‘war’ cannot be used.

“It is good to see that so many organisations, businesses, sporting bodies and governments are turning their back on Russia, though it is very sad for the Russian people themselves who will undoubtedly suffer as a result of a conflict which, evidence says, they do not want.”