Volodymyr Zelensky urges the UN to push back against ‘terrorist’ Vladimir Putin because the Russian leader will not stop at Ukraine – as he warns Moscow might drop NUCLEAR bombs

Volodymyr Zelensky has urged the UN to take action against Vladimir Putin because he will not stop at Ukraine’s borders – and warned he could drop nuclear bombs.

“When hatred is used as a weapon against a nation, it never stops there,” he said at the annual high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly.

“The goal of the current war against Ukraine is to turn our land, our people, our lives, our resources into weapons against you – against the rules-based international order.”

The war in Ukraine has compounded major disruptions to global supplies caused by the pandemic, leading to sharp rises in food and energy prices, shaking the global economy and deepening difficulties in many developing countries.

Decades-old energy supply channels to Europe from Russia, a major oil and gas producer, have been cut off or severely disrupted by the war due to sanctions, trade disputes, shutdowns of pipelines and major Western efforts to find alternative sources.

Russia and Ukraine are also major grain exporters, and Russia withdrew last summer from a deal allowing Ukrainian grain shipments via the Black Sea.

Zelensky highlighted food and fuel shortages and pointed to what Ukraine sees as kidnappings of at least tens of thousands of children taken from Ukraine after Moscow’s invasion: “What is going on? happen to them?

“In Russia, these children are taught to hate Ukraine and all ties with their families are severed. And this is clearly genocide,” Zelensky said in a speech that lasted 15 minutes – the meeting’s oft-ignored time limit.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant in March for Russian President Vladimir Putin and another official, accusing them of kidnapping children in Ukraine. Russian authorities have denied any forced transfer of children, saying some Ukrainian youths were placed in foster care.

Russia will have the opportunity to address the General Assembly on Saturday. Deputy UN Ambassador Dmitry Polyansky sat in Russia’s seat during Zelensky’s speech.

“Did he speak?” Polyansky said with a wry smile when asked by an Associated Press reporter for his reaction to the speech. “I didn’t notice he was talking. I was on my phone.

Zelensky appeared on the world stage at a sensitive moment in his country’s campaign to maintain international support for its fight. Nearly 19 months after Moscow launched a full-scale invasion, Ukrainian forces have been embarking on a three-month counter-offensive that has not gone as quickly or as well as initially hoped.

Ukraine and its allies present the country’s cause as a battle for the international rule of law, for the sovereignty of every country with a powerful and potentially expansionist neighbor, and for the stability of global food and energy supplies.

“We must resist this blatant aggression today and deter other potential aggressors tomorrow,” US President Joe Biden told the Assembly in his own speech on Tuesday. As he pledged his support for Ukraine, there was a round of applause, including from Zelensky.

Russia insists its war is justified, saying it is defending Ukraine’s Russian speakers from a hostile government and protecting Russian interests from NATO encroachment, and much more.

The war lasted longer and losses were greater than Russia hoped, and the fighting sparked widespread international condemnation against Moscow.

But the Kremlin also has influential friends who have not joined the chorus of censorship: China and India, for example, have adopted neutral positions. This is also the case for many countries in the Middle East and Africa. Many Latin American and Caribbean countries prefer to focus global attention on other global issues, including climate change and conflicts in Africa.

Moscow is keen to flaunt its global influence and relations with China and insists it cannot be isolated internationally by the United States and its European allies.

Meanwhile, Ukraine fears that support from its allies is waning. They have supplied billions of dollars’ worth of weapons, but fear their inventories will dwindle and defense contractors will struggle to rev up their production lines.

Hours before Zelensky spoke at the U.N., allied defense leaders met at a U.S. military base in Germany to discuss next steps. Some countries have promised more money and weapons. But a key sticking point is whether or not to provide the longer-range missiles that kyiv insists it needs.

The US Congress is considering Biden’s request to provide up to $24 billion more in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, amid growing partisan divide over spending on the conflict. Zelensky is expected to spend time Thursday at the Capitol and meet with Biden at the White House.

After landing in New York on Monday, Zelensky suggested that the UN must answer for allowing his country’s invader to sit at the tables of power.

Whether there is still “a place for Russian terrorists” in the United Nations, “this is a question that arises for all members of the United Nations,” Zelensky said after visiting wounded Ukrainian servicemen at the Staten Island University Hospital.

Russia is a permanent, veto-wielding member of the UN Security Council, responsible for maintaining international peace and security.

Zelensky took on the United Nations even before the war. In one memorable example, he lamented at the 2021 General Assembly that the UN was “a retired superhero” who had long forgotten how great it was.

A former comedian and actor who took office in 2019, Zelensky later became a wartime leader, wearing military fatigues, gathering citizens in his homes and appearing virtually and in person before numerous international forums.

At Staten Island Hospital, he awarded medals to service members who lost limbs. With the help of a New Jersey-based charity called Kind Deeds, 18 soldiers have been fitted with prosthetics and are undergoing outpatient physical therapy, hospital leaders said.

“We will wait for you all at home,” Zelensky told those he met. “We absolutely need each and every one of you.