Edward Marchesi The 81st United Nations General Assembly was held in New York, attended by numerous heads of state, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky . In his address, Zelensky drew a clear line against Russia, denouncing President Vladimir Putin 's war strategy and emphasizing the humanitarian and economic consequences of the war.
The speech featured a series of rigorous data, including a count of Russian casualties and an analysis of the impact on Moscow's energy sector.
Russian losses and the loss of oil control
According to its own sources, from January to August, the Russian military suffered 248.964 losses on the battlefield in Ukraine, a figure Zelensky called a humiliating defeat for a country with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
The head of state cited a post by former US President Donald Trump on Truth Social, in which he declared that Moscow had "lost control" of its oil industry . For Zelensky, seeing an "oil giant" reduced to a vulnerable position is difficult to imagine, especially given Moscow's historical pride in energy exports.
Trump's role in the narrative
In his statement, Zelensky recalled that Trump had called the war "ridiculous and endless" and expressed the hope that "no one, except Putin, would openly support the conflict." This statement was echoed by American sources who reported a subsequent telephone conversation between Trump and Zelensky, in which the US president reportedly asked Ukraine to suspend attacks on Russian refineries.
Appeal to Xi and proposal for security in the Black Sea
Zelensky also turned his attention to China, indicating that President Xi Jinping has the ability to influence Moscow's stance. "I would like to talk to Xi about peace," the Ukrainian leader declared, lamenting however the lack of a direct meeting, as Xi was in the United States, not New York. Diplomatic pressure materialized through participation in the Crimean international platform, where Zelensky offered Ukraine the right to guarantee safe navigation and food security in the Black Sea, provided Russia takes concrete steps toward de-escalation.
The link between Crimea and the energy crises
The Ukrainian president attributed the current surge in energy and food prices to Russian occupation of the Crimean Peninsula. According to him, if Russia had not turned the region into a military base, grain, fertilizers, diesel fuel, and oil could flow freely in the Black Sea, as they did before the invasion. Zelensky recalled that the violation of international law that began in 2014—with the annexation of Crimea—makes a return to normalcy impossible without restoring security, the protection of civilians, and the release of prisoners held by Moscow.
Broader military and diplomatic context
Meanwhile, clashes continue in the area: in Sumy, Russian forces struck a residential complex with two drones, killing a woman and wounding her husband, according to the head of the regional military administration. Meanwhile, Russia held Duma elections, with the United Russia party winning 49,4% of the vote, a result almost identical to the previous election cycle.
Other developments include the discovery of a drone near the Romanian Black Sea coast, neutralized by a bomb disposal team, and the growing tension stemming from Ukrainian air strikes against the Russian capital. Finally, diplomatic cooperation between Zelensky and Trump appears set to materialize on the sidelines of the Assembly, with the aim of producing "significant changes" in the dynamics of the conflict.