Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged his allies on Sunday to maintain pressure on Russia as strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure continue.
“Moscow allows itself to escalate its strikes, openly exploiting the fact that the world is focused on ensuring peace in the Middle East. That is precisely why no weakening of pressure can be allowed,” Zelensky wrote on X.
“Sanctions, tariffs, and joint actions against the buyers of Russian oil – those who finance this war – must all remain on the table. And it is exactly this approach that can open the path to lasting peace for Europe,” he continued. “The world can guarantee this in parallel with the peace process in the Middle East. I thank everyone who is helping.”
Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a new ceasefire last week as the yearslong conflict between Russia and Ukraine persists.
Despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to secure peace in Eastern Europe, Russia has launched a large number of combined missile and drone assaults on Ukraine’s energy plants that have left many citizens in the war-torn country without electricity in their homes.
In Zelensky’s Sunday post, a video shows photos and footage of the destruction committed by Russia seen in Ukraine’s Odesa, Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipro, and Kherson regions. Zelensky said the aerial attacks against Ukraine escalated last week, with Russia using more than 3,100 drones, 92 missiles, and about 1,360 glide bombs.
“Russia continues its aerial terror against our cities and communities, intensifying strikes on our energy infrastructure. The immorality of these crimes is such that every day Russians kill our people,” he said, citing the death of a child killed in Kostiantynivka.
BLACKOUTS ENVELOP UKRAINE AS RUSSIA TARGETS ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE
Zelensky has pointed to the continued Russian strikes as justification for establishing Ukraine’s own aerial defense systems. Late last month, he proposed a joint aerial shield operated by Ukraine and its European allies to counter Russian drones and missiles. Additionally, Zelensky is asking Trump to provide long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine to force Russia to the negotiating table.
Over three years after Russia’s invasion, Ukraine is calling on its partners to quickly end the war, just as the United States has helped mediate the start of a ceasefire in the Middle East.
, 2025-10-12 16:06:00, 
, Washington Examiner, %%https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/cropped-favicon.png?w=32, https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/feed/, David Zimmermann
