Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky Appeals for Arms to Fight Russia at UNGA

The 80th United Nations General Assembly debate entered its second day in New York. Wednesday’s slate of speakers included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who did not hold back from calling for military aid to counter Russia’s invasion.

“We are now living through the most destructive arms race in human history,” Zelensky said.

His call for more military support came with warnings about a new era in military technology and came just a day after President Trump expressed renewed support for Kyiv in its conflict with Russia.

Zelensky also pointed out recent drone incursions into NATO countries, saying, “Ten years ago, war looked different, and no one imagined that cheap drones could create dead zones, areas stretching for dozens of kilometres where nothing moves, no vehicles, no life,” he said.

He cautioned that the unchecked rise of artificial intelligence creates new military dangers. Zelensky said weapons, rather than dialogue, are key to repelling Russia’s aggression.

Zelensky said that the outcome of Russia’s attacks in Ukraine depends on those sitting before him at the UNGA and added that so many countries in the same room are “at war or just came out of war, or are trying to stop one or openly getting ready for one war.”