Zelenskyy: Putin mocks the West, world has failed to respond to Russian strikes

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has criticised the lack of a "worthy and strong response" from the international community to Russia's increasing attacks on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure. He said the West's silence only encourages Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin to continue his aggression.

Source: Zelenskyy in his evening address on 5 October

Quote: "Unfortunately, there has been no worthy and strong response from the world to everything that is happening – to the constantly growing scale and audacity of strikes. That is exactly why Putin does this – he simply mocks the West, its silence and the lack of strong actions in response."

Details: Zelenskyy emphasised that Russia has rejected all proposals to stop the war or even halt its strikes, and is now openly targeting Ukraine's civilian infrastructure, particularly gas facilities and the power grid, ahead of winter.

Quote: "Zero real reaction from the world. We will fight so that the world does not remain silent and so that Russia feels the response."

Details: Zelenskyy also pointed to the role of Western and international supply chains in the production of weapons used by Russia. "Every Russian missile and every Russian attack drone also contains parts that are still being supplied to Russia from Western countries and various countries close to Russia," he added.

The president gave specific examples: one Kinzhal aeroballistic missile contains 96 foreign-made components, many of which are critical and not manufactured in Russia. He added that nearly 500 drones used in the latest nighttime attack carried more than 100,000 foreign-made components, including parts from the US, China, Taiwan, the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands and other countries.

Zelenskyy called for tighter controls on the export of critical components and more decisive action by international partners to stop the supply chains fuelling Russia's war effort.