Zelensky: If a nation wants peace, it must work on its weapons.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the UN General Assembly, referring to the war in Ukraine and the need to strengthen the country’s military, “No one can guarantee security except ourselves. Only strong coalitions, strong partners, and our own weapons can do this.”
Pointing to the importance of developing the military sector, he said, “The 21st century is not much different from the past. If a nation wants peace, it still has to work on its weapons. Neither international law nor cooperation, but weapons decide who will survive.”
Zelenskyy questioned the implementation of international law, saying: “International law does not work fully unless you have powerful friends who are really willing to defend it; and even that does not work without weapons.”
There is no international body that can stop war
Zelensky, referring to Palestine, Somalia, and Sudan, said that “there is no single international body that can really stop any aggression.”
“Sudan or Somalia or Palestine or any other nation that has been living in war for decades, what can they really expect from the UN or the world system, except statements and declarations,” he said, referring to Gaza.
“Even Syria, after all these changes, still needs to ask the world to ease the sanctions that are strangling its economy. It needs to ask and wait. Syria deserves strong support from the international community,” the Ukrainian president added, referring to the new government in Damascus.
Artificial intelligence has taken the arms race to a dangerous stage
The Ukrainian president, referring to the arms race of our time, said: “We are now experiencing the most destructive arms race in the history of mankind, because this time it includes artificial intelligence.”
He added: “If there are no real guarantees of security except friends and weapons, and if the world cannot even respond to all threats, and if there is no strong foundation for international security, will there be any place on earth that is still safe for people?”