Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has issued a grave warning regarding the escalating attacks from Russia, disclosing that over 2,000 Shahed drones and missiles, outfitted with Western components, were unleashed against Ukraine in just the month of October. This alarming statistic underscores the severity of the ongoing conflict and the critical role of foreign-made parts in bolstering Russia’s military capabilities.
Zelenskyy highlighted the urgent need for enhanced export controls to prevent sanctions evasion, stating that Russia’s supply chain depends on over 170,000 individual components sourced from companies in China, Europe, and the United States. In a post on X, he emphasized the volume of weaponry aimed at Ukraine and the concerning role of foreign-made parts.
“Russia is gradually ramping up its daily attacks with Shahed drones and missiles, still using Western components to do so. In October alone, over 2,000 Shaheds were launched against Ukraine—almost every single day,” Zelenskyy wrote.
“Such a massive number of Shaheds requires over 170,000 individual components that should have been blocked from reaching Russia. All this is supplied to Russia from abroad. And sadly, including from companies in China, Europe, America – lots of micro-contributions to the constant Russian terror,” he added.
Zelenskyy reiterated the critical importance of tighter export controls on specific components, which he sees as key to closing Russia’s access to the supply chain necessary to circumvent sanctions.
“This ongoing supply chain highlights, yet again, the urgent need for the world to step up export controls on special components and resources. Russia must not be allowed to circumvent sanctions that were imposed long ago in response to this war,” he stressed.
Zelenskyy further called for an increase in sanctions, deeming any mechanism to bypass them as a “crime against people and the world”. He warned that these same networks empower Russia to support regimes in Iran and North Korea, urging global solidarity to counter this threat. “Sanctions must increase and be effective. Every scheme to bypass sanctions is a crime against people and the world. These very schemes also enable Russia to strengthen regimes in Iran and North Korea. This is a global threat, and only global, unified pressure can overcome it,” he said.
Zelenskyy’s comments came after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed new details on North Korean involvement, noting that approximately 10,000 North Korean soldiers are currently stationed in Russia, with around 8,000 located in the Kursk region.
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Blinken said that while these troops have not yet been involved in combat against Ukrainian forces, he anticipates their involvement in the near future. “We now assess that there are some 10,000 North Korean soldiers in total in Russia. And recent information indicates that as many as 8,000 of those North Korean forces have been deployed in the Kursk region. We have not yet seen these troops deployed in the combat against Ukrainian forces but we expect that to happen in the coming days,” he stated.
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He added, “Russia has been training Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) soldiers in artillery, UAVs, and basic infantry operations, indicating that they fully intend to use these forces in front-line operations. Should these troops engage in combat or combat-support operations against Ukraine, they would become legitimate military.”
