Fifty heads of state gather in Dublin as major security operation mounted

Main Points Parts of Dublin will come to a near-standstill today as security ramps up for two major EU summits in the city centre on Thursday and FridayPolitical leaders will discuss the war in Ukraine and other major issuesWorld leaders from across Europe will meet for the European Political Community summit later today in the Convention Centre DublinA security zone has been in force around the convention centre from Tuesday morning with no cycling, walking or vehicular access permittedA formal dinner will be held in the National Gallery of Ireland this eveningAn informal meeting of heads of state or government of the EU will take place on Friday in the convention centreKey ReadsDublin road closures: See full list of disruptionsBobby McDonagh: The traffic chaos is temporary. What happens this week in Dublin could have lasting impactSize of no-fly zone over Dublin increased for European summitsInside Politics newsletter: Government keen to keep up appearances as European leaders arriveJames Cox - 3 minutes agoTraffic disruption Travelling around Dublin will be difficult today. The policing and security operation is the largest undertaken by An Garda Síochána in the history of the State.For a full list of the road closures around the city, click here. James Cox - 18 minutes agoWitkoff and Kushner arrive in Moscow for Putin meeting ahead of travelling to DublinJared Kushner and Steve Witkoff have arrived at Moscow airport for their meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin, ahead of travelling to Dublin. Kirill Dmitriev shared a picture of their arrival, captioned: “Welcoming Steve and Jared to Moscow.”Donald Trump’s envoys will arrive in Dublin later today where they will brief Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy. James Cox - 26 minutes agoHuge security operation gets under wayMembers of the Garda Armed Support Unit outside the National Gallery in Dublin on Wednesday. Photograph: Niall Carson/Press Association Fifty heads of state are gathering in Dublin today to discuss the war in Ukraine and other major issues.The biggest security operation in the history of the State has been mounted in Dublin as Taoiseach Micheál Martin hosts the ninth meeting of the European Political Community (EPC).It is part of Ireland’s presidency of the Council of the European UnionWe will bring you all the news from these events here today.James Cox - 45 minutes agoPeace talksTaoiseach Micheál Martin greets Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of their meeting at Government Buildings. Photograph: Paul Faith / AFP via Getty Images Ukrainian president Volodmyr Zelenskiy said last night he believes there is a “window of opportunity” to make progress on peace talks with Russia before the end of the year.US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to fly into Dublin later today to brief Zelenskiy, having travelled from talks in Abu Dhabi to Moscow, where they were to meet with Russian president Vladimir Putin.