Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin is mortal and that Ukraine's Flamingo missiles must become a mass weapon that keeps striking Russia, in an address marking Ukraine's Independence Day.
The speech came as Ukraine marked 35 years since it declared independence from the Soviet Union on August 24, 1991.
Zelensky said tens of thousands of ground robotic systems are carrying out extremely dangerous missions on the front line and have already saved thousands of soldiers' lives.
He said Ukraine's naval drones are turning what was once Russia's fleet into scrap metal, but that Ukraine needs to sink more ships. He added that Ukraine's mid-range strikes are cutting the enemy's supply lines while its long-range strikes are cutting into Russian profits.
Zelensky said thousands of Ukrainian long-range strikes have already reached Moscow, Tuapse, Tula, Ryazan, Olenya and Omsk, along with dozens of other locations. He said Russia needs to see more of that kind of justice, and that the Flamingo missile should not remain a rare species but should become a mass weapon that essentially winters inside Russia.
Air defence and ballistic missiles
Zelensky said Ukraine is currently shooting down more than 90 percent of Shahed drones. He said Russia has shifted to jet-powered versions, which Ukraine is also intercepting, but that this needs to happen on a mass scale. He said the same approach must be applied to the parcel-type munitions Russia is using and to its ballistic missiles, adding that Ukraine is doing everything it can to make that happen and will succeed.
Putin 'stuck in the past'
Zelensky said Putin is stuck in the past and still views Ukraine as it once was, a country that would stay silent, swallow insults and endure, but said that Ukraine no longer exists. He said Ukraine will not allow Russia to seize the initiative or deceive Europe and the world into believing that simply handing over the Donbas region would quickly end the war. He said Russia does not want peace and instead wants to carry out mobilisation.
Zelensky said Putin is hoping Ukrainians have grown tired, but said Ukraine knows he is mortal. He said Putin never understood Ukraine and now will run out of time to do so.
Zelensky said he is glad the United States has lost any illusions about whether Russia genuinely wants to end the war. He said he believes America's remaining contradictions and hesitations over Russia will disappear, and that Russia needs to be brought to the negotiating table. He called for sanctions severe enough to make Russia howl and for Ukraine to be given everything needed to force Russia to end the war, saying this is achievable.
He also said China must no longer stay silent. He said that when someone dresses up in a sailor's uniform and cap and, mispronouncing words, talks about a nuclear strike, China needs to respond and calm the situation. He said China must prove its ambition to be a world leader not only economically and technologically but also in a civilisational sense, by making clear that no dictator should be allowed to threaten the planet with old warheads.
US marks Ukraine's independence
According to UNIAN, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio congratulated the people of Ukraine on behalf of the United States on the 35th anniversary of independence. He said that 35 years after Ukraine declared independence from the Soviet Union on August 24, 1991, the United States reaffirms its unwavering cooperation with Ukraine.
A statement published on the US State Department's website said the United States remains committed to Ukraine's sovereignty and continues working to support a negotiated settlement of the Russia-Ukraine war that would secure a strong and lasting peace.
