The world must stop the head of Russia, deprive Russia of any ability to wage war and spread evil, and force it to de-escalate. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this during his address to the General Debate of the UN General Assembly in New York.
The Head of State referred to President Trump’s social media post stating that Russia had lost control of its diesel industry because of the war with Ukraine.
“It is hard to imagine a more humiliating loss for a country that has a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and takes so much pride in its oil exports,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The President emphasized that for nearly five years, Russian generals have been trying to carry out the Russian leader’s insane order to seize Ukraine’s east – the Donetsk region.
“And just this year, from January through August, the Russian army lost 248,964 people on the battlefield in Ukraine. In 8 months. 248 thousand. Killed and badly wounded. Twenty-one countries in the world have smaller populations than the number of Russian troops lost in just these 8 months,” the Head of State noted.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine has video evidence confirming each of these losses, but Russians still go to their deaths because that is what the Russian ruler wants.
“After losing so many people, Russia managed to capture just over one thousand square kilometers of our land this year – and we have already liberated a significant part of it. Russia is a country that already has 17 million square kilometers of its own land – without any Ukrainian territory, by the way. So to add another thousand square kilometers, Putin is paying with 248 people for every kilometer. Does anyone still think that he is reasonable and moderate?” the President added.
According to the Head of State, Kim Jong Un, a comrade of the Russian leader, sent his troops to Russia to reinforce the Russian army, but they too suffered heavy losses.
“Why should Koreans give their lives in a war against Ukraine? Kim Jong Un uses them like currency. And he gets something in return. And North Korea’s neighbors – and countries across Asia – have probably already noticed its improved ballistic missiles and Pyongyang’s much greater drone capabilities,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The Head of State said that Ukraine recently handed over two North Korean prisoners of war to the Republic of Korea, one of whom attempted suicide.
“This is how they raise people in the North. They take away their freedom. They take away their right to choose. And they drill into them that they must die, no matter what. Do you really want to give such a force more time to learn how to wage war?” the President noted.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that the Russian leader recently once again promised the U.S. President’s envoys that he would seize the Donetsk region within a few months.
“And then he moves the deadline again. Putin will fail this time too. But after that, he will once again make it clear to the world that even our Donetsk region is not enough for him. He wants more of our cities – Odesa and Kharkiv. Dnipro and others. Someone in the Kremlin even put up a picture with the words: ‘On to Kyiv,’” the Head of State noted.
According to the President, Russia has territorial claims against Moldova and constantly threatens Poland and the Baltic states, while showing no respect for the statehood of the countries of the South Caucasus and Central Asia.
“Putin is always looking for someone who can help him kill more people for every kilometer of land, take more territory, attack another country – instead of simply stopping and running his own country,” he emphasized.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that the Russian leader resembles “patient zero,” from whom the idea of war spreads, bringing instability, new risks, and crises.
“The more freedom Putin has to act – the more dangerous the world becomes for everyone else. That is why “patient zero” must be stopped. He must be denied the space to act – and the space to spread this evil further,” the President stressed.
The Head of State noted that Ukraine does not aim to weaken Russia’s oil industry or port infrastructure.
“Our target is Russia’s ability to finance this war, to drag it out, to make it more brutal and more destructive. Russia’s finances and Russia’s production are what must be stopped if Putin is to be stopped. And our great soldiers and our weapons are working for this, only for this. The world’s support for Ukraine helps us do it,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The President thanked every partner country for its support for Ukraine, including stronger sanctions against Russia, support packages, and joint weapons production.
“When someone gives Russia more money through trade, they give this war more time. That is exactly why we insist on limiting trade with the aggressor – and why we are burning Russia’s revenues ourselves,” the Head of State emphasized.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that when Russia has money, it rejects diplomacy, abuses its veto power at the UN, and only pushes peace further away and weakens the world.
“And when someone in the world weakens sanctions against Russian oligarchs, it may make life more comfortable for rich Russians – but it also gives the war more time, more time for Putin to send poor people into the kill zone. So Russia’s revenues must remain a target,” the President emphasized.
The Head of State noted that Russia’s budget deficit is now larger than in any previous year, and most Russian regions have already gone bankrupt.
“Russia’s bet on cruise missiles and ‘shaheds’ did not work the way Putin planned. They still cause damage, but they didn’t break us. We built our defense. What is truly difficult for us now is Russian ballistic missiles and their new jet-powered ‘shaheds,’ Iranian technologies,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
According to the President, since the beginning of this year, Russia has used more than 2,100 missiles of various types against Ukraine, more than 950 of them ballistic missiles. Over the first eight months of this year, Russia used 63,000 attack drones of various types against Ukraine, more than 7,700 of them jet-powered “shaheds.”
“The Russians launch jet-powered ‘shaheds’ every hour – every hour – against our cities, our economy, our infrastructure. Our combat aircraft are fighting them 24/7. And this is part of Russia’s strategy – to create an air threat every hour, to make life harder for the economy and to disrupt people’s lives, and to stop children from being able to study, just to study at school,” the Head of State noted.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukrainian warriors have successfully tested four new jet-powered interceptor drones against Russian jet-powered “shaheds.”
“We are scaling up production, and we will build, of course, we will build protection against this threat too. We have also launched an anti-ballistic program, FREYJA, together with our partners. Ten countries are already part of it: Ukraine, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain and the Netherlands. Last week, I invited Poland to join. And we are also in consultations with a couple of other allied governments who want to join FREYJA,” the President informed.
The Head of State noted that the goal of the FREYJA program is to create a system that can be produced on a much larger scale and at a lower cost and that can become an integrated part of Ukraine’s and Europe’s defense.
“The global waiting list for anti-ballistic systems is very long. There are more and more ballistic threats. And the industrial capacity of those who choose war is very large. So we need to produce enough protection so that every person sitting in this hall can say: my people are truly protected. That is our approach to security,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
The President noted that even the world’s wealthiest countries cannot find enough interceptor missiles, while those that had built up stockpiles over the years have already used a significant share of them.
“Unfortunately, this is the reality even in the Gulf, where countries really worked to build a strong anti-ballistic system, anti-ballistic defense. So we need a new program. We need FREYJA. Join this common effort,” the Head of State emphasized.
The President noted that Ukrainians did not choose this war and that Ukraine has proven that it is possible to withstand and survive against a much larger enemy.
“We also have the Drone Deal format. This is not simply about selling drones. Not, of course. It is cooperation with other countries to build a modern, integrated defense system against drone threats – in the air, at sea and on land. And this is not only about protecting the sky. Drones help us control our borders – it’s important – mountain areas and, of course, roads – and without them, this would simply be impossible,” the Head of State stressed.
According to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Drone Deals are ready-made security formats that we adapt to each specific country and region.
The Head of State noted that when Russia started this war, it could not have imagined that Ukrainian long-range drones would reach its factories thousands of kilometers from our border, or that Ukrainian naval drones would be able to sink Russian cruisers.
“Along with different types of drones, we also produce a wide range of conventional weapons – quickly, at lower cost than in many other countries, and tested in modern war. Ukraine is building its own security so that we reinforce our role of a real provider of security – and help others get the protection that has already worked for us and that can truly reduce the space for starting and spreading wars in the world. Peace through protection,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The President emphasized that the coming winter could be very difficult for Ukraine, but in response, we must make it painful for Russia as well.
“That's exactly why we say that de-escalation steps are important, are needed before winter. Now. We need diplomacy – and we need strength. And step by step, we are closing the gaps in both,” the Head of State said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted that the leader of China can significantly influence Russia and that Ukraine wants him to seek peace as well.
“We believe the world has the power to make this happen. We are sure the world needs this. And this is about energy. About critical infrastructure. This is about food security. This is about the lives of many, many people in many countries,” the President emphasized.
The Head of State noted that the world must slow down the rapid development of weapons designed to kill, which has continued throughout the war and has become a global threat.
“As early as next year, there is already a real possibility that AI – not only people – will begin to decide what happens on the battlefield. And we need peace before we reach that point,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The President emphasized that Russia is using citizens of 47 countries in its war, including Ghana, Nepal, Tajikistan, India, Yemen, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Belarus, Sudan, South Africa, and many others.
“I want to speak directly to every representative of these 47 countries:
You know what Russia is doing with your people, your citizens. Take care of them. And do not let them end up on another front. Do not let Putin drag you into his war. Do not let Russia put out its fires, cover up its shame, and pay for its madness with the lives of your people. Limit his room to act. Limit his money. Limit his war,” the Head of State concluded.
