Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin “will keep driving the war forward wider and deeper” unless the world acts decisively.
Speaking at the UN General Assembly in New York, Zelensky urged allies to unite and increase support, saying Russian aggression could spread unless it is confronted.
“We are now living through the most destructive arms race in human history,” Zelensky said, highlighting the growing threats from advanced military technology and autonomous drones.
He called for international rules on AI in weaponry, arguing that “weapons decide who survives” and that stopping Russia now is far cheaper than facing the consequences later.
Zelensky also criticised international institutions, suggesting they are “too weak” to guarantee Ukraine’s safety.
He cautioned that membership in longstanding alliances “doesn’t automatically mean you are safe.” Europe, he said, cannot afford to lose Moldova to Russian influence, adding that past opportunities to secure Georgia and Belarus were missed.
Moldovan President Maia Sandu accused the Kremlin of “pouring hundreds of millions of euros” into her country to spread fear and instability ahead of Sunday’s elections.
Nato members Estonia, Poland, and Romania have recently reported Russian airspace violations, prompting calls for consultations.
Zelensky praised US President Donald Trump following their meeting at the UN, noting that Washington appears willing to provide Ukraine with security guarantees after the war.
Trump, for the first time, suggested Ukraine could reclaim all its territory with support from the EU and Nato, marking a sharp change from his previous stance advocating “land swaps.”
He also described Russia as a “paper tiger,” a comment Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected, calling it “in absolute contrast with our understanding of the current state of affairs.”
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Washington, urging Moscow to take “meaningful steps toward a durable resolution of the Russia-Ukraine war.” The Kremlin has not issued a response to the meeting.
