WorldPosted at: Sep 24 2026 12:35AM


Limit his room to act: Zelenskyy warns world as Russia draws troops from 47 nations, pays 248 troops for every km seized

New York, Sep 24 (UNI) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a sharply worded warning at the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, accusing Russia of paying a staggering human cost for limited territorial gains and saying Moscow had “messed up” its war in Ukraine, while stressing that diplomacy backed by strength was the only path to ending the conflict.
He said Russia had suffered great losses between January and August, according to Ukrainian figures, “Russia messed up,” Zelenskyy said, noting that Russia itself has around 17 million square kilometres of territory.
Zelenskyy revealed that between January and August this year alone, Russia lost nearly 249,000 soldiers killed or badly wounded, a number he said exceeds the entire population of 21 countries. For all that bloodshed, he said, Russia captured just over 1,000 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory, much of which has already been retaken.
He drove the math home with a line Putin, Zelenskyy said, "is paying with 248 people for every kilometre", territory added to a country.
Mocking Putin's repeated pledges to seize the Donetsk region "within months," Zelenskyy said the promise has now been made roughly seventeen or eighteen times over five years, calling it always "the same" story before the deadline quietly moves again. He warned that even Donetsk would not satisfy Moscow, that Odesa, Kharkiv and Dnipro would be next.
Zelenskyy said no world leader supported the war apart from Putin and criticised the Russian leader for repeatedly setting deadlines for capturing Donetsk only to move them again.
He also accused North Korean leader Kim Jong Un of sending troops to support Russia at weak points on the battlefield. Zelenskyy alleged that Pyongyang is receiving improved ballistic missiles and drones in return.
Zelenskyy singled out North Korea's involvement, saying Kim Jong Un sent troops to prop up "weak points" in Russia's army and treats his soldiers "like currency" in exchange for missile and drone technology upgrades. He described a captured North Korean POW who tried to take his own life rather than be taken alive ,as evidence, he said, of a regime that strips its people of any right to choose.
Citing Ukraine's deep-strike campaign against Russian oil infrastructure, Zelenskyy said the goal is never energy exports themselves but Moscow's "ability to finance this war." He noted Russia's oil industry which was long a source of national pride is now "running out of fumes," and that Russia's budget deficit is the worst on record.
Zelenskyy warned that Russia is already drawing people from 47 countries into the war, including India, Ghana, Nepal, Tajikistan, Yemen, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Cuba, Belarus, Sudan and South Africa, and urged countries not to allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to pull them into the conflict. “Do not let Putin drag you into this war,” he said, calling on the international community to “Limit his room to act. Limit his money. Limit his war.”
According to Zelenskyy, Putin's ambitions extend beyond the current front lines, with Russia seeking control over Odesa, Kharkiv and Dnipro and posing threats to Moldova, Poland and the Baltic states.
He said Russia had launched more than 2,100 missiles, including 950 ballistic missiles, along with 63,000 attack drones and 7,700 jet-powered Shaheds, with attacks taking place “every hour.” Ukraine, he said, was therefore working to weaken Russia's ability to finance its military campaign.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine had developed four new types of jet-powered interceptor drones and was working with 10 countries on the FREYA anti-ballistic missile programme, while inviting Poland to join the initiative.
He insisted that Ukraine had not chosen the war but had chosen to defend its independence and freedom. “We choose not to die. We choose not to lose our independence, our freedom,” he said.
At the same time, Zelenskyy warned that the conflict could ultimately move beyond Ukraine and affect NATO countries. He said Russia's use of foreign nationals in the war showed that the conflict was already acquiring an international dimension.
He also warned that Ukraine would respond to continued attacks on its energy infrastructure. “We will make it painful for Russia too,” he said, signalling that Kyiv would continue targeting Russia's ability to sustain the war if Moscow persisted with attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities.
Zelenskyy stressed that military strength alone would not end the conflict and called for diplomacy backed by credible power. He said Ukraine wanted negotiations but argued that diplomacy could succeed only when supported by the ability to defend itself.
He also called on Chinese President Xi Jinping to use his influence to support peace, while raising a broader warning about the rapid development of artificial intelligence in warfare. Zelenskyy said AI could begin determining battlefield outcomes as early as next year, making it even more urgent to establish peace before warfare becomes increasingly automated.
The Ukrainian President said the immediate objective was to restrict Russia's ability to continue the war through money, military supplies and access to resources, while keeping diplomatic channels open.
“Limit his room to act. Limit his money. Limit his war,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy ends by describing Russia’s continued war as “madness”, urging global action to secure peace.
“Please, everyone here, don’t be the last to join those who defend life. Be the first to say ‘we guarantee security’. UNI AAB
Tags: #Limit his room to act: Zelenskyy warns world as Russia draws troops from 47 nations# pays 248 troops for every km seized
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