DUBLIN, Ireland: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy received a rock-star welcome when he reached the Oireachtas to address a joint session of both houses.

Zelenskyy told TDs and senators in the Dáil that Ukraine was "trying to reach every heart."

The Ukrainian president was greeted by the sight of the Labour leader, Ivana Bacik, sporting two large glittering hearts pinned to her lapel, one in the colors of the Irish flag and the other in the colors of the Ukrainian flag.

She wasn't the only one who showed sartorial support. Most members on the Government benches sported pins featuring the Irish and Ukrainian flags, while sunflowers, yellow ribbons, and a yellow-and-blue scarf were scattered among the crowd.

As Zelenskyy entered, eager politicians thrust out their hands from every direction for a handshake.

He took his seat beside the Ceann Comhairle (presiding officer or Speaker), watched by his wife Olena Zelenska, who sat with the Taoiseach's wife Mary Martin and Ukrainian dignitaries.

In her opening remarks, Verona Murphy described Olena Zelenska as "a model for women worldwide".

However, not everyone shared Labour's enthusiasm for the Ukrainian leader. People Before Profit TDs Richard Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy stood but did not join in the repeated ovations.

The party's TDs had done something similar after Zelenskyy's 2022 virtual address to the Dáil and were criticized for it.

They said it was because they disagreed with Zelenskyy's calls for NATO's involvement in the war and a "decision to ban opposition parties" in Ukraine.

In a statement issued shortly after Zelesnkyy's speech, Barrett and Murphy also condemned Russia but criticised increased militarization.

While thanking Ireland for its support, Zelenskyy drew parallels between Irish and Ukrainian history.

He said, "Our peoples, Ukrainian and Irish, are among the few in Europe who spent centuries fighting for the right to remain themselves.

"Ireland has stood firmly and clearly for our independence and for a just end to this war."

During the day, various speakers invoked the weight of history, referencing the Good Friday Agreement, the Second World War, and Ireland's diaspora.

Several TDs captured photos and videos of Zelenskyy's speech, marking the historic nature of the day.

Outside the Oireachtas, there was heavy security with imposing Ukrainian security personnel and the Garda's dramatic-looking armoured tactical trucks, or "battle wagons" in attendance.

The cavalcade surrounded the Ukrainian president as he travelled to meet his Irish counterpart, Catherine Connolly, at Áras an Uachtaráin, where he signed the visitors' book.

He thanked President Connolly for hosting him and the people of Ireland for hosting displaced Ukrainians.