Russia Continues Bombing Ukraine ahead of Presidents' Meeting on Friday

Even with a bilateral meeting between President Donald Trump and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this Friday, October 17, Russia is not silencing its attacks against Ukraine and its unarmed civilian population. There is no contribution or regret.

At least three people were killed and 17 others injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine over the past day, local authorities reported on October 14.

Ukrainian air defenses shot down or suppressed 69 out of 96 Shahed-type attack drones and other drones launched by Russia overnight, according to the Air Force. Twenty-seven drone strikes were recorded at seven locations, with drone fragments striking another location, according to the report.

Russian forces launched powerful glide bombs and drones against Ukraine’s second-largest city in overnight attacks, hitting a hospital and wounding seven people, an official said Tuesday.

The Russian attack on Kharkiv in Ukraine’s northeast, 25 miles from the Russian border, hit the city's main hospital, forcing the evacuation of 50 patients, regional head Oleh Syniehubov said. The attack’s main targets were energy facilities, Zelenskyy said, without providing details of what was hit.

“Every day, every night, Russia strikes power plants, power lines, and our (natural) gas facilities,” Zelenskyy said on Telegram.

Russian long-range strikes on Ukraine’s power grid are part of a campaign since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022 to disable Ukraine’s power supply, denying civilians heat and running water during the upcoming bitter winter.

Zelenskyy urged foreign countries to help blunt Russia’s long-range attacks by providing more air defense systems for the country, which is almost the size of Texas and hard to defend from the air in its entirety.

“We are counting on the actions of the U.S. and Europe, the G7, all partners who have these systems and can provide them to protect our people,” Zelenskyy said. “The world must force Moscow to sit down at the table for real negotiations.”

According to the UN, Russians also hit humanitarian mission trucks in the Bilozerska community. Russian forces deliberately targeted them with drones and artillery, said Ukrainian officials.

Four WFP-marked trucks delivering aid to civilians were hit. As a result, one vehicle was burned, another was severely damaged, and two others managed to escape the strikes. No one was injured.

“Today, the ‘second army’ of the world defeated several tons of humanitarian aid. Terrorists — there’s nothing more to say,” officials said.

Zelenskyy prepared to travel to Washington and ask President Trump for more American military help. The talks are expected to center on the potential US provision to Ukraine of sophisticated long-range weapons that can hit back at Russia.

Trump has warned Moscow that he may send Tomahawk cruise missiles for Ukraine to use. Such a move, previously ruled out by Washington for fear of escalating the war, would deepen tensions between the United States and Russia.

But it could provide leverage to help push Moscow into negotiations after Trump expressed frustration over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to budge on key aspects of a possible peace deal.

Tomahawks would sharpen Ukraine’s ability to fight back against Russia, though its long-range attacks are already taking a toll on Russian oil production, Ukrainian officials and foreign military analysts say.

Its strikes using newly developed long-range missiles and drones are causing significant gas shortages in Russia, according to Zelenskyy.

Russians Intensify Aerial Attacks against Ukraine

Ukrainian government and news media sources have tabulated a marked increase in Russian aerial attacks on Ukrainian civilian residences and energy facilities.

Kyiv reported a 38% jump in combined Russian drone and missile attacks through September compared with August, Ukrainian Air Force data analyzed by ABC News showed, as Moscow intensified its nightly long-range barrages across the country. Most recently, Russia has begun daytime bombing runs against Ukraine.

Ukraine's air force said Russia launched a total of 5,636 drones and 187 missiles into the country through September. That meant a roughly 39% increase in the number of drones and a nearly 20% increase in the number of missiles versus August.

The air force reported a daily average of nearly 188 Russian drones and just over six Russian missiles in September. Defenders downed or suppressed almost 87% of all Russian drones and over 68% of Russian missiles through the month – rates roughly comparable with previous months.

To date, July 2025 was the busiest month for Ukrainian defenders, who faced 6,443 drones and missiles across the course of the month, per air force data.

The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine confirmed that the number of Ukrainians killed and injured in the first five months of 2025 has increased by 1.5 times compared to the same period in 2024. Russian attacks have become significantly more lethal, according to a report by the HRMMU.

“Ballistic missiles, when used in densely populated areas, cause predictable and widespread harm to civilians, as demonstrated by these recent attacks,” Danielle Bell, head of the HRMMU, said.

This deadly intensification comes at a time when the White House, national advocates for Ukraine and even Moscow claim to want peace. If and when peace comes to Ukraine, it must include the evacuation of all Russian cutthroats to Russia and the maintenance of Ukrainian territory and borders, according to international agreements.

Russian troops launched more than 3,100 drones, around 1,360 glide bombs and 92 missiles of various types on Ukraine in the past week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on October 12.

In a renewed effort to disrupt Ukraine’s energy grid ahead of winter, Russia carried out several large-scale missile and drone strikes on energy and gas facilities last week.

An overnight attack on October 10 led to widespread power outages across multiple regions. Civilian infrastructure was also hit, resulting in casualties both in Kyiv and in Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts.

Zelenskyy said Russia is purposefully ramping up attacks as global attention shifts to the Middle East, where Israel and Hamas this week agreed to the first phase of a US-brokered peace plan.

“That is precisely why no weakening of pressure can be allowed,” he said. “Sanctions, tariffs, and joint actions against the buyers of Russian oil — those who finance this war — must all remain on the table.”

In addition to deadly drones and missiles, the number of cyberattacks on Ukraine spiked by 69.8 percent in 2024, reaching 4,315 incidents, compared to 2023, when 2,541 cyber incidents were recorded, the State Service for Special Communications and Information Protection reports on their website.

Hackers most often targeted: local authorities, the government and government organizations, the security and defense sector, the energy sector, commercial organizations, and telecommunications.

The most common types of attacks included: distributing malicious software, phishing, malicious connection, and compromising accounts or systems.

The hackers’ goal is to steal sensitive information and to destroy data and information systems, notes the State Special Communications Service.

There is a steady trend towards an increase in cyberattacks today, primarily targeting Ukraine’s critical infrastructure, notes the government’s computer emergency response team CERT-UA.

“The enemy does not abandon their attempts to destabilize our country with the help of cyber warfare. This indicates that confrontation in the cyber realm remains one of the hottest spots in the war,” they noted, suggesting that Russia would continue to employ all possible methods to obtain important intelligence.

Before the weekend, Russian drone and missile strikes overnight Friday, October 10, caused blackouts across large sections of Ukraine, damaged residential buildings and injured at least 20 people in Kyiv, authorities said. A child was killed in attacks in the southeast of the country.

In the heart of the Ukrainian capital, rescue crews pulled more than 20 people out of a 17-story apartment building as flames engulfed the sixth and seventh floors. Five people were hospitalized, while others received first aid at the scene, authorities said.

The Russian “cynical and calculated” strikes targeted civilian and energy infrastructure as Ukraine prepared for falling winter temperatures, Zelenskyy said on social media.

Nonetheless, the people remember and pay tribute to Ukraine’s fallen heroes, according to the Associated Press. Every morning at 9 o’clock, Kyiv stops for a minute.

Traffic lights turn red, and the steady beat of a metronome on loudspeakers signals 60 seconds of reflection. Cars idle in the middle of the street as drivers step out and stand with heads bowed.

Across Ukraine — in cafes, gyms, schools, on television and even on the front lines — people pause to remember those killed in Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The world must also remember and pay tribute to Ukrainians killed defending their homeland as well as protecting Europe.

 

Only Sadists can Behave Like This

Demented sadists are shown cutting off body parts of living human beings in so-called snuff movies.

In real life, these demented sadists are Russian cutthroats led by their führer Vladimir Putin. They slaughter unarmed Ukrainian men, women and children who are going about their daily civilian activities.

The past week has seen more waves of Russian drones and ballistic missiles striking residential apartment buildings, heating complexes and power plants ahead of the cold weather as Moscow seeks to inflict as much pain and suffering on the people as it can. The high-pitched sound of incoming drones and missiles count off the last minutes of life before they strike their non-military targets. The Russians have bombed supermarkets, churches, schools, hospitals, nurseries, playgrounds, food lines and trains with technologically sophisticated weapons that don’t arbitrarily kill without a human digital directive to strike civilian objectives.

Russian drone and missile strikes overnight Friday, October 10, caused blackouts across large sections of Ukraine, damaged residential buildings and injured at least 20 people in Kyiv, authorities said. A boy of 7 was killed in attacks in the southeast of the country.

In the center of the Ukrainian capital, rescue crews pulled more than 20 people out of a 17-story apartment building as flames engulfed the sixth and seventh floors. Five people were hospitalized, while others received first aid at the scene, authorities said.

The Russian “cynical and calculated” strikes targeted civilian and energy infrastructure as Ukraine prepared for falling winter temperatures that begin in October, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media.

Zelenskyy accused Russia of deliberately timing the strikes to maximize damage while minimizing the political implications of the attacks.

“I believe that the weather conditions affected our capability to repel by something like 20-30%," Zelenskyy told reporters during a press briefing following the attack, Reuters reported.

Weather conditions overnight were favorable for Russia's attempt to evade air defenses, with low visibility reported in Kyiv and the country's eastern regions. The temperature in Kyiv also dropped to approximately four degrees Celsius (39 degrees Fahrenheit) overnight.

In his evening address, Zelenskyy further lambasted Russia for staging the attack amid an international focus on the ongoing peace deal between Hamas and Israel.

“Putin is clearly taking advantage of the moment when the world is now paying almost all its attention to the possibility of establishing peace in the Middle East. Most of the world's states, all key leaders, have focused their attention on what is happening there. And this is a really good chance to achieve real peace after so many victims in that region,” Zelenskyy said. “And this is a new record of Russian meanness - to intensify terrorist attacks at such a moment, to strike precisely at the lives of our people.”

Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko also described the attack as “one of the largest concentrated strikes” against Ukraine’s energy infrastructure of the war that began with Russia's invasion in February 2022.

A journalist friend of mine, a resident of the capital, described the horror in this manner: “All night long, shaheeds and ballistic missiles. There is no electricity in a large part of Kyiv. There is no water either. The metro (subway) from one bank of the Dnipro to the other is not running. On all metro lines on the right bank, the intervals have been increasing and so on…”

Zelenskyy observed on social media: “At many critical infrastructure sites, recovery efforts continue following Russia’s strike on the energy sector. It was a cynical and calculated attack, with more than 450 drones and over thirty missiles targeting everything that sustains normal life, everything the Russians want to deprive us of. As of now, more than 20 people across the country have been reported injured – all are receiving the necessary assistance. Sadly, a child was killed in Zaporizhzhia as a result of the attack. My sincere condolences to the family and loved ones.

“It is precisely the civilian and energy infrastructure that is the main target of Russia’s strikes ahead of the heating season (which means the onset of winter). Together, we can protect people from this terror. What’s needed is not window dressing but decisive action – from the United States, Europe, and the G7 – in delivering air defense systems and enforcing sanctions. We count on a response to this brutality from the G20 and from all those who speak of peace in their statements yet refrain from taking real steps. The world can defend itself against these crimes – and doing so will undoubtedly strengthen global security. Thank you to everyone who is helping.”

This attack came on the heels on an even larger bombardment on the previous weekend. Russia launched drones, missiles and guided aerial bombs across Ukraine early Sunday, killing five people in a major nighttime attack that Ukrainian officials said targeted civilian infrastructure.

Moscow fired 53 ballistic and cruise missiles and 496 drones, Ukraine’s air force said. Zelenskyy reported that nine regions were targeted. Four people, including a 15-year-old, died in a combined first drone and missile strike on Lviv, according to regional officials and Ukraine’s emergency service.

It was the largest aerial assault on the historic western city and surrounding region since Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, according to Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the local military administration. Earlier in the war, Lviv was seen as a haven from the fighting and destruction farther east.

Earlier, on October 4, a Russian double-tap drone strike on a railway station in Sumy Oblast killed one person and injured at least 30 others including 3 children, authorities said. Drones struck the passenger station in the city of Shostka, Sumy Oblast, damaging two trains. Video from the scene shows the flaming wreck of several carriages of one of them.

Passengers and Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railroad) workers were on the site at the moment of the attack, according to Zelenskyy

And this weekend, October 11-12, the Russians launched 118 drones and a Kh-31 guided missile in its attack on Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, 113 drones have been shot down or jammed.

Ukraine has not been waiting idly for the war to end as it has been taking the fight to Russia. Its drones have struck near Moscow and have been wreaking havoc with Russia’s oil refineries and petroleum reserves. Gasoline shortages have been reported in Moscow and other large cities.

Fortunately, America’s Tomahawk missiles will soon be on the way to Ukraine. “I had a call with US President Donald Trump — a very positive and productive one,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “I received the necessary signals that the US is considering ways to strengthen our cooperation. We are grateful for this.”

Tomahawks are seen as a game changer in the Russian war against Ukraine because they can reach targets as far as 1,500 miles away with precision, putting even Moscow easily within reach — and would “scare the shit out of the Russians more than almost anything else we could do,” according to a senior congressional aide.

Russians deserve to be scared into capitulation. 

Senate Passes National Defense Authorization Act with Support for Ukraine

The Senate approved the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the massive annual defense policy bill late Thursday, October 9, as the U.S. government remains shut down.

The GOP-led chamber approved the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 70-20, aiming to fund the U.S. military at $924.7 billion in fiscal 2026 as well as provide assistance to Ukraine. The vote came after lawmakers reached a deal earlier in the day to unlock the stalled legislation.

The House and Senate will now work together to craft a final, reconciled version that the president will sign into law.

“The federal government’s number one responsibility is to look after the safety and security of this country. I’m glad this legislation passed the Senate with broad, bipartisan support, and I was proud to secure multiple provisions to support Iowa and invest in our state’s military installations,” Sen. Chuck Grassley said. “While this legislation sets the Defense Department up for success next year, our military service members are sadly working without pay today because Democrats have shut down the government and are holding government funding hostage for unrelated policy demands. I’m once again calling on more of my Democrat colleagues to join the three conscientious members of their party and end their partisan obstruction and join with Republicans to support a continuation of government. Our brave men and women in uniform shouldn’t have to suffer as a result of Democrats’ senseless political tactics.”

Grassley secured the following priorities in the Fiscal Year (FY) 26 NDAA:

Authorization of federal funds to support Iowa’s military installations:

• $148 million for projects at the 185th Air Refueling Wing/Sioux Gateway Airport, including aircraft parking apron, extended runway, runway repair and warm-up/holding pad;

• $13.8 million for the vehicle maintenance shop at the Waterloo Armory (Army National Guard);

• $8.5 million for Corrosion Control Research which helps support the work at the University of Northern Iowa under the STAR4D program;

• Provisions to bolster the Rock Island Arsenal through a pilot program on arsenal workload sustainment, which encourages public-private partnerships to increase minimum workloads at US owned arsenals like Rock Island;

Measures to crack down on costly price gouging by defense contractors by ensuring the Department of Defense (DoD) gets transparent pricing information. This builds on Grassley’s previous oversight work on price gouging with C-17 spare parts;

• A Grassley-led provision to allow the three Baltic countries to share High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers and ammunition purchased from the United States between each other without bureaucratic red tape, to complicate Russian strategic planning;

• The Abducted Ukrainian Children Recovery and Accountability Act with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) to support Ukraine’s efforts to investigate and track the nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children who have been abducted during Putin’s brutal invasion. The bill would also assist with the rehabilitation and reintegration of children who are returned and provide justice and accountability for perpetrators of these abductions;

• The Baltic Security Initiative Act with Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) to enhance and strengthen U.S. security cooperation with the Baltics amid Putin’s aggressive action in the region. The bipartisan legislation effectively codifies the Baltic Security Initiative effort; and

Provisions to increase transparency on foreign influence in U.S. policy by defining “informational materials” under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). The measure would clarify what types of materials that aim to influence public opinion and policy must be both labeled with a conspicuous message and filed with the DOJ.

Grassley also secured key wins in the NDAA in his capacity as Senate Judiciary Chairman, including six bipartisan law enforcement bills that had previously been blocked by Senate Democrats since passing out of the Judiciary Committee during Police Week in May.

The six law enforcement bills passed as part of the NDAA include:

• The Grassley-Klobuchar Protecting First Responders from Secondary Exposure Act to protect officers and first responders against accidental exposure to dangerous substances;

• The Grassley-Klobuchar Retired Law Enforcement Officers Continuing Service Act to address law enforcement staffing shortages;

• The Reauthorizing Support and Treatment for Officers in Crisis Act to expand mental health resources for law enforcement officers;

• The Strong Communities Act to boost law enforcement recruitment and retention;

• The PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act to aid state and local law enforcement agencies in combating child sexual exploitation online; and

• The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act to expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers.

Massive Russian Airborne Attacks across Ukraine Shed First Blood in Lviv

Russia launched in the past few days its largest series of airborne attacks against Ukraine from east to west, shedding blood for the first time in Western Ukraine’s metropolitan jewel Lviv, some 80 to 120 kilometers (50 to 75 miles) from the Polish border.

Moscow fired 53 ballistic and cruise missiles and some 600 drones, Ukraine’s Air Force said. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that nine regions were targeted and tens of thousands have been left without electrical power at a time when the country is preparing for cold weather.

Moscow stepped up attacks specifically on Ukraine’s energy grid and gas production sites in recent weeks as the fourth winter of war approaches, and as diplomatic efforts to end the fighting have stalled due to Moscow’s stubbornness in fulfilling its manifest destiny to subjugating all of Ukraine. Outwardly, in meetings with European and American officials it feigns interest in peace. However, if fact, Russia is not interested in peace or an end to the war that it began in February 2022.

Ukrainian officials have urged its European and American allies to step up their comprehensive support for Ukraine.

Russia is clearly pursuing its age-old mission, enunciated unambiguously by the Kremlin’s leadership, of annihilating as many Ukrainian men, women and children as possible and then imprisoning the survivors in a renewed captive nation.

Local officials reported that four members of one family, including a 15-year-old girl, were killed by the Russian strike in the village of Lapaivka as attacks mostly targeted the Western Ukrainian region of Lviv. Another family member was injured, as were two neighbors, in the strike that killed their relatives in Lapaivka.

Lviv endured several hours of strikes, leading to the suspension of public transport services and the cutting of electrical supplies. Maksym Kozytskyi, Lviv’s regional head, said it was the largest attack on the region since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. He said some 163 drones and missiles were identified in the area.

Ukraine’s neighbor Poland, concerned by the closeness of Russian airborne attack, scrambled fighter jets in order to ensure the safety of its airspace, the Polish military confirmed. “Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, while ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have been brought to the highest state of readiness,” Poland’s operational command said in a post on X. Allied NATO aircraft were also deployed. Russia’s Defense Ministry admitted it had successfully carried out a “massive” strike on Ukrainian military and infrastructure targets.

One person also died in Zaporizhzhia. Zelenskyy said Russia fired more than 50 missiles and around 500 attack drones. Ukraine’s air force put the combined figure at 549.

The Ivano-Frankivsk, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, Odesa, and Kirovohrad regions were targeted as well as Lviv and Zaporizhzhia, according to Zelenskyy.

He added: “We need more protection and faster implementation of all defense agreements, especially on air defense, to deprive this aerial terror of any meaning.

“A unilateral ceasefire in the skies is possible and it is precisely that which could open the way to real diplomacy,” Zelenskyy observed.

Russian assaults came days after a US official said Washington would support Ukraine launching deep strikes inside Russian territory. The White House is considering dispatching to Ukraine Tomahawk missiles, an American long-range, all-weather, jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile that is used by the United States Navy, Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy in ship and submarine-based land-attack operations.

At 05:10 (02:10 GMT), all of Ukraine was under air raid alerts following Ukrainian Air Force warnings of Russian missile and drone attacks.

Russia continues to focus its attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure as winter approaches.

Kyiv’s energy ministry said overnight attacks caused damage in Zaporizhzhia, Chernihiv and Sumy.

In Zaporizhzhia, Russia’s overnight attack left “more than 73,000 consumers... without electricity” after a power plant was struck, according to Ivan Fedorov, the regional governor.

A woman was killed and several others injured in the region.

A 16-year-old girl was among those receiving medical assistance, Fedorov added, posting photos apparently showing a partly destroyed multi-story block and a burnt-out car from the site of the attack.

Emergency outages were implemented in Chernihiv and Sumy, the energy ministry added.

Russia’s drone incursions against several EU countries were well-calculated and an attempt to ‘move the red lines’, said Sergiy Kyslytsya, the former Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Nations and currently First Deputy Minister in charge of foreign affairs. 

Europe needs to “get serious” about the existential threat posed to it by Russia, Ukraine’s deputy foreign minister has said, warning that Vladimir Putin will “escalate escalating.”

In an interview with the Guardian, Kyslytsya, known for his acerbic criticism of Russian diplomats at the UN, said the Kremlin was already at war with Europe. He said Russia’s recent drone incursions against several EU countries were well-calculated and an attempt to “move the red lines.”

“I’m sure Putin gets emotional if not physical satisfaction humiliating the West by showing what he perceives as his super-strength,” Kyslytsya said, adding that the Russian despot’s reckless actions risked antagonizing a White House that appeared to be cooling on him. “It’s a boomerang thing,” Kyslytsya said.

What Russia does next depends on whether Europe and the Trump Administration show collective resolve, he suggested. Without a decisive transatlantic response, Putin would “escalate escalating,” he predicted, with more actions designed to disrupt and paralyze the continent.

Kyslystya is one of the Ukrainian government’s most effective communicators, known for his lively social media posts. He became something of a cult figure in Ukraine soon after Putin’s full-scale invasion when he ostentatiously read a book titled “What’s Wrong With Diplomacy?” as the Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, made a speech to the UN Security Council.

Russia launched its largest attack of the war against critical natural gas facilities run by Ukraine’s Ukraine’s state-owned Naftogaz group overnight, officials said on Friday.

Serhii Koretskyi, chief executive of Naftogaz, said Russia had fired 35 missiles and 60 drones at facilities of the gas and oil company in the Kharkiv and Poltava regions.

Koretskyi said the attack had “no military purpose” and was “yet another act of Russian malice aimed solely at disrupting the heating season and depriving Ukrainians of warmth in winter”.

Officials accused the Kremlin of plotting to wear down the Ukrainian power grid ahead of winter.

“Last night, the Russians committed a real act of genocide against the population of the Chernihiv region. During another drone attack, several important power supply facilities were damaged at once. Emergency power cuts affected about 50,000 users,” Chernihivoblenergo said, News.Az reports, citing Ukrainian media.

“The Russian side is testing our strength again, but we will stand firm! Energy workers are continuing to restore power, so please be patient and take care of your safety,” the regional power company added.

Earlier, over the past few days, Russians carried out massive attacks on 17 settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region, delivering more than 600 strikes with various types of weapons, according to Ivan Fedorov, head of the Zaporizhzhia regional military administration. Russians sent 390 drones of various modifications to the Zaporizhzhia region, carried out 6 MLRS strikes, and 202 artillery strikes.

Russia attacked the settlements of Hryhorivka, Malokaterynivka, Plavni, Stepove, Huliaipole, Shcherbaky, Novodanylivka, Mala Tokmachka, Novoandriivka, and Poltavka.

According to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Russia carried out 17 air strikes on Hryhorivka, Malokaterynivka, Komyshuvakha, Stepnohirsk, Lukianivske, Novodanylivka, Novoandriivka, and Poltavka.

A total of 390 Russian drones, primarily of the FPV (First Person View) modification, had attacked the following locations: Tavriiske, Plavni, Stepove, Huliaipole, Shcherbaky, Novodanylivka, Mala Tokmachka, Novoandriivka, Charivne, Bilohiria, Rivnopillia, and Poltavka.

Russia launched a massive missile and drone strike against Ukraine’s energy facilities on Oct. 3, Zelenskyy said in his evening address, accusing Moscow of trying to deepen the hardship of civilians ahead of the cold season.

“Just today, Russia struck our gas infrastructure with 35 missiles, including ballistic weapons. It was a combined strike, and only half of the missiles were shot down,” he said after a meeting with Ukraine's top military command.

Zelensky said additional attacks also hit the Chernihiv and Sumy oblasts, while ballistic missiles struck energy facilities in Donetsk Oblast, including in Kramatorsk, Sloviansk and Druzhkivka.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones attacked the Azot chemical plant in Russia’s Perm Krai overnight on Oct. 3, regional Governor Dmitry Makhonin reported.

The strike briefly disrupted production at the facility, which is one of Russia’s largest nitrogen fertilizer producers and a key supplier of chemicals used in both agriculture and explosives.

Located about 1,700 kilometers (1,056 miles) from Ukrainian-controlled territory, the plant produces ammonia, urea, and ammonium nitrate, as well as higher aliphatic and crystalline sodium nitrite. In 2024, it reported record output of more than 2.3 million tons of products.

“According to updated information, an attack by enemy drones was carried out at night... There was a brief stoppage of the technological cycle at Azot,” Makhonin said. “Emergency services specialists continue to work at the scene, and an operational headquarters has been set up.”

Reuters previously reported that five Russian chemical companies supplied over 75% of the materials used by the country’s explosives and gunpowder factories since the start of the full-scale war.

Substantiating its intention to hurt unarmed civilians, at least 30 people have been injured following a Russian drone strike on a railway station in northeast Ukraine, Zelenskyy has said. In a post on X, he said that preliminary reports indicated train staff and passengers were at the site of the strike in the city of Shostka, in the Sumy region.

He also posted a video showing a damaged train carriage on fire.

“The Russians could not have been unaware that they were targeting civilians. This is terrorism, which the world has no right to ignore,” Zelensky wrote on X.

“Every day Russia takes people’s lives. And only strength can make them stop.”

According to the regional governor Oleh Hryhorov and the Ukrainian Railways body, there were two strikes which hit two passenger trains. Three children, aged 8, 11 and 14, were among the injured, Hryhorov said.

The second strike hit at a time when evacuations from the area were already under way, a statement from the railways body said.

It represented a “vile” attack “aimed at stopping communication with our frontline communities,” the statement continued. Shostka lies in north-eastern Ukraine, some 50km from the Russian border.

It is clear that Russia doesn’t want to end the war it started; it doesn’t want peace to return to Europe. Hopefully, the Trump Administration will pursue its new policy of disbelieving Putin’s comments while arming Ukraine with every weapon it needs to defeat Russia and expel it from all Ukrainian lands. He should also welcome Kyiv’s desire to join NATO and other defensive structures.

Murder, Depravity, Crimes Surround Russia’s Actions in Ukraine

War crimes know no limits in the minds and actions of Russian cutthroats.

Every day brings more examples of premeditated acts of Russian inhumanity committed during its latest 1,300-plus day war against Ukraine. Moscow’s abomination also testifies to the fact that its mission is to annihilate today’s and future generations of Ukrainians and inflict upon the survivors as much pain and suffering as they can.

Russian aggression against Ukraine is not a horrific, electronic war game. The bombardment is real, the destruction is real, the blood is real, and the deaths of innocent men, women and children are real.

Ukrayinska Pravda reported this week that Russian butchers near the town of Shandryholove on the Lyman front have executed a civilian family of civilians and captured their under aged daughter. The Russian invaders are now using her as a human shield for their units to facilitate attacks.

The Ukrainian newspaper wrote: “Radio intercepts have revealed that even before the assault on the settlement, the Russian commander, who goes by the alias Bali, gave orders to wipe out the civilian population, instructing his forces to act quickly and ‘kill everyone on their way with no exceptions.’ 

“An enemy unit entered a residential building and killed the civilians – the child’s parents – by shooting them. The Russians abducted the girl and are continuing assault operations, holding her hostage to prevent anyone from firing on them.

“Units in the Third Army Corps are documenting the Russians’ war crime live: ‘All the radio intercepts indicate the premeditated nature of the enemy’s actions.’

“The Third Army Corps stressed how important it is for civilians to evacuate from the combat zone as soon as possible.”

Murdering civilians and using them as human shields constitutes a war crime, according to the Geneva Conventions. Russia has been accused of widespread abuse, torture, and summary executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians during the full-scale invasion.

Children have also been among the victims of Russian aggression. The UN documented over 2,000 children killed during the full-scale war, though the real figure is likely much higher, as Moscow does not allow independent monitoring of some of the most war-stricken areas. One in every five children in Ukraine also reported losing a relative or a friend since the start of the full-scale war, UNICEF, the UN’s children's rights agency, reported in February.

Ukrainian prisoners of war, who are universally accorded special rights based on their status, have also fallen victims to Russian wanton debauchery.

A video showing the execution of six unarmed Ukrainian POWs by Russian soldiers began circulating online on Thursday, Jan. 23, of this year.

In the video, the date and location of which Kyiv Post was unable to independently verify, but said to be in the Donetsk region, Russian cutthroats are seen shooting six captured Ukrainian soldiers. The fate of a seventh soldier is unclear, as the video cuts off.

Verkhovna Rada (Parliamentary) Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets reacted to the footage on Telegram: “The shooting of each prisoner occurs in front of their comrades. The occupiers order them to ‘lie down and shut their mouths,’ while the ‘operator’ of the crime says ‘One is mine,’ before firing a series of bullets into the back of one of the prisoners.”

Lubinets said that the video shows the Russian military’s “criminality.”

As of early July, Russian forces have executed 268 Ukrainian prisoners of war. The Ombudsman's Office believes these executions could be carried out under orders from Russia's top military leadership.

Lubinets said this during a press conference marking his third anniversary in office, Ukrinform reports.

“According to our data, investigations are currently underway into the execution of 268 Ukrainian POWs by Russian soldiers. We've seen a sharp increase in this number over the past year,” Lubinets said.

He emphasized that such actions are unlikely to occur without approval from Russia’s top military command. “We understand that this treatment of Ukrainian prisoners of war is sanctioned from the very top. Unfortunately, this is the reality we’re witnessing,” he added.

Two years ago, on March 6, 2023, a graphic 12-second video showed a captured Ukrainian soldier, Oleksandr Matsievskyi, in camouflage, unarmed, standing in a shallow trench in a wintry forest, calmly puffing a cigarette. As the soldier is heard saying “Slava Ukrayini” (“Glory to Ukraine”), salvos of automatic weapons from multiple sides are heard and seen shooting the man, who collapses. Voices in the Russian language were heard saying “Die, bitch.” Before the murder, he was allegedly forced to dig his own grave, in the video he is in a hole, and there is a shovel behind him.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) published a report on Sept. 23 detailing the vast scale of torture committed by Russian invaders on Ukrainian civilians held in captivity in occupied territories.

Between June 1, 2023, and Sept. 10, 2025, OHCHR documented 508 cases of civilian detainees, including 392 men, 103 women, three girls, and nine boys. These include individuals of all age groups, from adolescents to older adults, as well as 15 persons with disabilities.

“We will leave you to rot. No one will find you. No one needs you. You don’t exist. We'll bury you right here; only hungry dogs will find you,” one civilian detainee said when describing the threats he received in captivity.

While detained by Russia, Ukrainians are subjected to brutal torture, including physical and psychological torture, ill-treatment, sexual violence, and inhumane conditions of detention.

“People have been arbitrarily picked off the streets in occupied territory, charged under shifting legal bases and held for days, weeks, months, and even years, often with limited contact to their families,” Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in the report.

The mass abduction of children is another crime constituting genocide. Ukraine has identified 19,553 minors sent to Russia against their will. This led on March 17, 2023, to the International Criminal Court issuing a warrant for the arrest of Vladimir Putin and his Russian Children's Rights Commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova.

Russia’s intent is to erase Ukraine's existence as a state by trying to steal its future: “Russia uses forced relocation, reeducation, and in some cases, adoption of Ukrainian children as key components of its systematic efforts to suppress the identity, history, and culture of Ukraine,” officials state.

In addition, there is militarization: in a network of more than 200 facilities (camps, cadet schools, bases, and youth centers) identified by the Yale HRL organization, children participate in close-order drill training, basic weapon handling, tactical first aid, and even drone manufacturing/assembly; some of these activities are channeled through youth structures like Yunarmiya or the Pioneers Movement (a Soviet-origin organization). The research details that dozens of locations provide systematic military training and a significant proportion run continuous patriotic indoctrination programs. Russia denies the facts and presents them as "recreation" or humanitarian evacuations, but evidence collected by Yale HRL, international media, and NGOs shows an organized and expansive pattern of the Kremlin’s child abuse.

There are also 1.5 million children growing up under the shadow of forced Russification in occupied areas.

Remember this next time you’re planning to buy Russian-made products.

‘It Depends on All of Us’

Following is the speech by the President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine during the General Debate of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 24, 2025.

Bullet-point summary

• Today, no one but ourselves can guarantee security. Only strong alliances. Only strong partners. And only our own weapons.

• You know perfectly well – international law doesn’t work fully unless you have powerful friends who are truly willing to stand up for it. And even that doesn’t work without weapons.

• Ukrainians are peaceful people. But they are people who want to live – to live freely, in their own independent country. That’s why we invest in defense. For many nations, there is simply no other way left.

• And as Russia’s war against my country goes on, people are still dying every week. Yet there is no ceasefire – because Russia refuses.

• Russia abducted thousands of Ukrainian children.

• Even being part of a long-standing military alliance doesn’t automatically mean you’re safe.

• We must not forget about protecting the rights of people – and the rights of nations – in regions where these rights are under threat.

• We also mourn the Ukrainian woman Iryna Zarutska. She was brutally killed with a knife here in America – the very country where she was seeking refuge from Russia’s war.

• War tech doesn’t care about geography anymore – it’s now reshaping it.

• We are now living through the most destructive arms race in human history – because this time, it includes artificial intelligence.

• We need to restore international cooperation – real, working cooperation – for peace and for security. A few years from now might already be too late.

• Ukraine doesn’t have the “big, fat” missiles dictators love to show off in parades. But we do have drones that can fly up to 2,000–3,000 kilometers. We had no choice but to build them – to protect our right to life.

• And none of this would have happened if Putin had not started this full-scale aggression, full-scale war.

• And every year that this war goes on, weapons become even more deadly. And only Russia deserves to be blamed for this.

• To protect lives, Ukraine builds underground schools and underground hospitals.

• The facts are simple: stopping this war now – and with it, the global arms race – is cheaper than building underground kindergartens or massive bunkers for critical infrastructure later.

• So we must use everything we have – together – to force the aggressor to stop. And only then do we have a real chance that this arms race won’t end in catastrophe for all of us. If it takes weapons to do it, if it takes pressure on Russia – then it must be done. And it must be done now.

• If security guarantees work for Ukraine – something more than just friends and weapons – it will mean that people were able to make national security not a privilege for a few nations, but a right for everyone.

• So it depends on you – whether you help peace or continue trading with Russia and helping Russia to fund this war.

• It depends on you – what will define existence: war – like now, or our joint strong actions – as it should be.

• But in the end, peace depends on all of us – on the United Nations.

• So don’t stay silent while Russia keeps dragging this war on – please, speak out and condemn it.

• Please join us in defending life, and international law and order.

Dear leaders!

Dear friends and all those who can become our friends – because you want safety and peace just as much as we do.

Today, no one but ourselves can guarantee security. Only strong alliances. Only strong partners. And only our own weapons. The 21st century isn’t much different from the past. If a nation wants peace, it still has to work on weapons. It’s sick – but that’s the reality. Not international law, not cooperation – weapons decide who survives.

Excellencies!

You know perfectly well – international law doesn’t work fully unless you have powerful friends who are truly willing to stand up for it. And even that doesn’t work without weapons. It’s terrible, but without it, things would be even worse. There are no security guarantees except friends and weapons.

No Ukrainian chose this kind of reality. And knowing our people, they would have chosen a different priority. Ukrainians are peaceful people. But they are people who want to live – to live freely, in their own independent country. That’s why we invest in defense. For many nations, there is simply no other way left.

Nations can speak about their pain from stages like this, but even during bloodshed, there isn’t a single international institution that can truly stop it. That’s how weak these institutions have become.

What can Sudan, or Somalia, or Palestine, or any other people living through war, really expect from the UN or the global system? For decades, just statements and statements.

And even everything happening in Gaza remains without a way out.

Even now, Syria – after all the changes – still has to appeal to the world to ease the sanctions that are choking its economy. It has to ask and wait. Syria deserves stronger support from the international community.

And as Russia’s war against my country goes on, people are still dying every week. Yet there is no ceasefire – because Russia refuses.

Russia abducted thousands of Ukrainian children. And we’ve brought some of them back. And I thank everyone who’s helped. But how long will it take to bring all of them home? Childhood slips away faster than adults are able to help.

Look at Israel. Nearly two years have passed, and hostages still haven’t been freed. They must be freed. But even that still hasn’t happened.

And for years, there have been no real answers to other threats either – chemical weapons, and famine used as a weapon.

Last year at this assembly, I warned the world about the risk of radiation disasters – especially due to Russia’s occupation of our Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, the biggest in Europe. But nothing’s changed. Nothing. And yesterday, the plant went into blackout again. And Russia hasn’t stopped shelling – even in areas near a nuclear facility. And because international institutions are too weak, this madness continues.

Even being part of a long-standing military alliance doesn’t automatically mean you’re safe. Just recently, 19 simple Russian drones violated Polish airspace. And only 4 were shot down. Luckily, they weren’t “shaheds” or even worse. Otherwise, the results would’ve been horrific.

Estonia had to call a UN Security Council meeting – for the first time in history – because Russian fighter jets deliberately entered its airspace.

Moldova is defending itself – again – from Russia’s interference. We’re helping Moldova. And Russia’s trying to do to Moldova what Iran once did to Lebanon. And the global response? Again – not enough. We have already lost Georgia in Europe. Human rights and the European nature of the state system are only shrinking there. Georgia is dependent on Russia.

And for many, many years, Belarus has also been moving toward dependence on Russia. Europe cannot afford to lose Moldova too.

It’s important to remember how the world once ignored the need to help Georgia after Russia’s attack – and how the moment was missed with Belarus. Now Moldova must not be lost. And for Europe, supporting Moldova’s stability is not costly – but failing to do so would come at a much higher price. That’s why the EU needs to help Moldova now – with funding and energy support, not just words or political gestures.

We must not forget about protecting the rights of people – and the rights of nations – in regions where these rights are under threat. The UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights must apply everywhere. But the Taliban in Afghanistan dragged a whole country back into the dark ages. Cartels in some Latin America countries are more powerful than the governments there. This is all about collapse of international law and the weakness of the international institutions. And so it’s about the rise of weapons. Weapons decide who survives.

Excellencies!

Yesterday, President Trump stood right here, in this hall. God saved him from a murder attempt during the campaign. A shot was fired from a rifle, and just a fraction of an inch saved his life.

Just days ago, President – along with hundreds of thousands of Americans – honored the memory of Charlie Kirk. Sadly, his life was cut short by a bullet – once again, violence with a rifle in hand.

We also mourn the Ukrainian woman Iryna Zarutska. She was brutally killed with a knife here in America – the very country where she was seeking refuge from Russia’s war.

And almost every day, when we open the news, we see headlines about violent attacks – happening all around the world. Most of it is done with weapons people are already used to. But weapons are evolving faster than our ability to defend ourselves.

Now, there are tens of thousands of people who know how to professionally kill using drones. Stopping that kind of attack is harder than stopping any gun, knife, or bomb. This is what Russia has brought with its war.

It used to be that only the strongest countries could use drones – because they were expensive and complex. Now, even simple drones can fly thousands of kilometers. War tech doesn’t care about geography anymore – it’s now reshaping it.

Just recently, airports in Europe had to shut down because of drones. Authorities couldn’t even say what kind of drones they were, who sent them, or from where.

Last week, North Korea announced the test of a tactical strike drone. That means – even countries with limited resources can now build weapons that are dangerous to their neighbors.

Ukraine – and nations like Saudi Arabia – know all too well how dangerous Iranian attack drones are. But what happens when all the types of drones become available even to small terrorist groups or cartels? The world moves too slowly to protect itself. And weapons move fast.

Now, companies are already working on drones that can shoot down other drones. And it’s only a matter of time – not much – before drones are fighting drones, attacking critical infrastructure, and targeting people – all by themselves, fully autonomous, and no human involved – except the few who control AI systems.

Dear leaders!

We are now living through the most destructive arms race in human history – because this time, it includes artificial intelligence. And if there are no real security guarantees – except friends and weapons, and if the world can’t respond even to old threats, and if there’s no strong platform for international security – will there be any place left on Earth that’s still safe for people?

We need global rules – now – for how AI can be used in weapons. And this is just as urgent as preventing the spread of nuclear weapons.

We need to restore international cooperation – real, working cooperation – for peace and for security. A few years from now might already be too late.

10 years ago, war looked different. No one imagined that cheap drones could create “dead zones”, areas stretching for dozens of kilometers where nothing moves, no vehicles, no life. People used to imagine that only after a nuclear strike – now it’s drone reality. Mass-produced, simple drones, and without AI – yet.

Ukraine doesn’t have the “big, fat” missiles dictators love to show off in parades. But we do have drones that can fly up to 2,000–3,000 kilometers. We had no choice but to build them – to protect our right to life.

Control over the sea used to depend on having a big navy. Ukraine doesn’t have a big fleet. But we succeeded in the Black Sea – we pushed what’s left of the Russian navy into remote bays. And we did it with sea drones. That’s how we protect our ports and maritime trade routes – because Russia has left us no other choice.

And our “Spiderweb” operation, when cheap drones destroyed or damaged dozens of expensive Russian strategic bombers, became a real example for special forces around the world of what new weapons can do to old systems. These very Russian bombers attacked our cities.

And none of this would have happened if Putin had not started this full-scale aggression, full-scale war.

And every year that this war goes on, weapons become even more deadly. And only Russia deserves to be blamed for this.

Dear leaders!

To protect lives, Ukraine builds underground schools and underground hospitals. To protect lives, we have to spend more on protecting power stations from drone and missile attacks than on building sports facilities or cultural infrastructure. Ukrainian farmers are learning how to protect their equipment from Russia’s FPV drone strikes, and for them, that challenge is far greater than climate change. Russia’s war has put us in this situation. But do you have protection against similar threats?

The facts are simple: stopping this war now – and with it, the global arms race – is cheaper than building underground kindergartens or massive bunkers for critical infrastructure later.

Stopping Putin now is cheaper than trying to protect every port and every ship from terrorists with sea drones.

Stopping Russia now is cheaper than wondering who will be the first to create a simple drone carrying a nuclear warhead.

So we must use everything we have – together – to force the aggressor to stop. And only then do we have a real chance that this arms race won’t end in catastrophe for all of us. If it takes weapons to do it, if it takes pressure on Russia – then it must be done. And it must be done now. Otherwise, Putin will keep driving the war forward – wider and deeper.

And we told you before – Ukraine is only the first. And now, Russian drones are already flying across Europe. And Russian operations are already spreading across countries. Putin wants to continue this war by expanding it. And no one can feel safe right now.

So first, we are now building a new security architecture for ourselves. More than 30 countries are already part of our Coalition.

And we’re strengthening army, launching joint weapons production with partners, and defining financial commitments for defense – in a way that could become a security model for any other nation. If security guarantees work for Ukraine – something more than just friends and weapons – it will mean that people were able to make national security not a privilege for a few nations, but a right for everyone.

Second, we’re ready to make our modern weapons become your modern security, your modern weapons. And we’ve decided to open up arms exports. And these are powerful systems – tested in a real war when every international institution failed.

And we are also ready to grow our defense production together with strong partners so that their protection is modern and reliable. You don’t need to start this race from scratch – we are ready to share what has already proven itself in real defense.

And third, many in the world – still relaxed, still. But look at how many countries are here, at this General Assembly – countries that are at war, or just came out of war, or are trying to stop one. Or openly getting ready for one. War has already reached too many people to pretend it has nothing to do with you.

So it depends on you – whether you help peace or continue trading with Russia and helping Russia to fund this war. It depends on you – whether prisoners of war will be freed, whether abducted children will come home, whether hostages will be free. It depends on you – what will define existence: war – like now, or our joint strong actions – as it should be.

Yesterday, we had a good meeting with President Trump. And I also spoke with many other strong leaders. And together, we can change a lot. Of course, we’re doing everything to make sure Europe truly helps. And of course, we count on the United States. I appreciate the support we are receiving. Yes, much depends on the G7 and G20. But in the end, peace depends on all of us – on the United Nations.

So don’t stay silent while Russia keeps dragging this war on – please, speak out and condemn it.

Please join us in defending life, and international law and order. People are waiting for action. Thank you so much!

Glory to Ukraine!