Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Moscow during the United Nations General Assembly that Ukraine will strike back and make the coming winter particularly painful for Russia if the two sides fail to reach an agreement on halting energy attacks before the cold sets in.
Ukrainian authorities and their allies are working urgently to secure limited agreements on energy infrastructure and Black Sea shipping, fearing a fresh wave of Russian strikes on electricity and heating facilities, while Moscow continues to show little interest in broader negotiations to end the war.
In his address to the General Assembly, the Ukrainian president said that "Ukrainians understand that this winter could be very difficult for us. But in response, we will have no choice but to make it painful for Russia as well."
Zelensky emphasized that despite Russia's superiority in missile stockpiles used throughout the conflict, his country has developed and deployed thousands of long-range drones to strike warehouses, port infrastructure and oil refineries inside Russian territory, adding that "this is exactly why we say that de-escalation measures are needed before winter."
Alongside the New York meetings, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and after the meeting Rubio noted that both countries expressed some willingness to examine a limited ceasefire that would apply to grain and energy targets.
However, in an official statement from the Moscow Foreign Ministry, the Russians made clear they maintain "unconditional commitment to achieving the goals of its special military operation," and Lavrov himself clarified at the Security Council that his country does not intend to approve any temporary pause in fighting, saying that "Europe, whatever it thinks, just wants to get a respite, and it wants to use it to pump weapons into the Kyiv regime."
At another event on the sidelines of the UN meetings, Zelensky addressed President Vladimir Putin's direct involvement in the fighting and called him "patient zero who must be stopped. He must be deprived of the space to act, and the space to spread this evil further." Additionally, at the Crimea conference Zelensky declared that Kyiv is ready to advance a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea according to proposals that came from Egypt, India and Turkey, stating that "we are waiting for Russia's response. Ukraine is ready... to ensure safe shipping and food security in the Black Sea if Russia is ready to take real steps toward de-escalation as well. We have to start somewhere."
"Patient zero" is a medical and epidemiological term describing the first person infected with a contagious disease during an outbreak, and is the source from which the disease began spreading to the rest of the population.
In the political context cited, President Volodymyr Zelensky used the phrase metaphorically to label Russian President Vladimir Putin, meaning that he is the central figure from whom the war begins and spreads.
