Zelensky seeks more air defence as Russia plunges Kyiv into cold
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A man carrying a torch as he walks along a dark street in a neighbourhood left without electricity after recent Russian strikes on the capital’s civilian infrastructure in Kyiv, Ukraine.
PHOTO: REUTERS
VILNIUS - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sought more air defence support from allies on Jan 25 as hundreds of buildings in Kyiv were without heating in freezing temperatures for a second day after Russian strikes.
Russia has hit Ukrainian energy infrastructure throughout the nearly four-year war
“This week alone, the Russians have launched more than 1,700 attack drones, over 1,380 guided aerial bombs and 69 missiles of various types,” Mr Zelensky said as he arrived in Vilnius. “That is why missiles for air defence systems are needed every day, and we continue working with the United States and Europe to ensure stronger protection of our skies.”
Russian bombardments have hit Kyiv particularly hard, forcing half a million people to evacuate.
Mayor Vitali Klitschko said: “There are currently 1,676 high-rise apartment buildings in Kyiv without heating following the enemy’s attack on Kyiv city on Jan 24.”
Sub-zero temperatures and repeated air strikes have slowed efforts by repair crews working to restore heating and electricity.
‘Imperial Russia’
Mr Zelensky was in Vilnius for a ceremony to commemorate the 1863 uprising in Poland and Lithuania against Czarist Russia.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki, who also attended the event, drew a parallel between the Russian invasion of Ukraine and past struggles for freedom by people in the Russian empire.
“The message of these celebrations is that by looking to the past for what we have in common, it’s easier today to face the problems ahead of us. Especially in an era of the revival of imperial Russia,” his office said on social media platform X.
“Whether it’s czarist Russia, Bolshevik Russia or Vladimir Putin’s Russia, our countries (Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine), now independent, still face the same problem: the threat posed by the Russian Federation,” Mr Nawrocki said in his speech.
Mr Zelensky, in his speech, said: “European politicians should value the fact that they represent free and independent states, rather than having to lead uprisings against empires and occupiers today.”
From left: Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda and Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki attending a joint press conference at the Presidential Palace in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Jan 25, 2026.
PHOTO: EPA
“It is too early for Europe to relax while Russia’s war machine is still running, and while dictators around Europe are not weakening,” he added. “They all look at Europe – at us – as prey.”
Poland and Lithuania are among Ukraine’s staunchest supporters in the European Union, and both have recently supplied hundreds of generators to the war-torn country.
Meanwhile, US-brokered talks with Russia and Ukraine on Washington’s plan to end the war concluded with no apparent breakthrough on Jan 24.
Still, Mr Zelensky said the negotiations were “constructive”
