The Russians wanted to turn this winter into the destruction of Ukraine and Ukrainians, but Ukraine did not break, we preserved our energy system - address of the President

The Russians began this winter with a massive strike on the sixth of December, which became one of the largest.  Then there were more than seven hundred different targets in the strike, and more than fifty missiles alone. There was a lot of ballistics this winter. In total, there are more than seven hundred missiles of various types. No nation has ever gone through such trials. Ukrainians overcame that too.

I am grateful to everyone who protects and restores our energy industry: to all employees of energy companies, to every repair and emergency crew, to the entire team of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine - you are truly heroes.

Of course, I want to thank every Ukrainian soldier: everyone who defends our sky, every air defense unit, Ukrainian aviation, mobile fire groups, all developers, manufacturers, operators of interceptors - thank you! Thanks to those communal services and local and regional authorities who were really with people this winter, with their towns and villages. Everyone in Ukraine saw who and what is worth in the management of cities, in the management of communities.

I especially want to recognize Ukrainian entrepreneurs, every business in Ukraine - both small and large - that was able to adapt to these conditions, kept their jobs, got through this winter and works in Ukraine. It is extremely important that we continue to be resilient. We know that the Russians are not going to stop with the strikes. This is a fact. They are preparing new attacks. On infrastructure. Intelligence provides relevant information.

Therefore, everyone whose work, whose service is to protect Ukraine from attacks, should be just as focused in the spring, now, as in the winter. Each threat must be responded to and Russian targets must be shot down as much as possible. The situation in the Middle East shows how difficult it is to provide one hundred percent protection against missiles and "shaheeds".

Even in the Gulf countries, which have better air defense systems than our partners have given us so far, and have a larger number of systems, they still do not shoot down all the ballistics. There are also "martyrs" who were not stopped by air defense in the region. Everyone now sees that our defense experience is irreplaceable in many ways. We are ready to spread this experience, ready to help those peoples who helped us - Ukraine - this winter and in general during this war.

Europe must still provide itself with a real force, a real ability to defend its sky, its land, its sea against any type of attack. In particular, for this, it is still necessary to build sufficient volumes of air defense production - both against drones and against ballistics. We are recording in detail now and every change in the situation around Iran. Ukrainian intelligence, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - all are involved. We are in coordination with partners.

It is important that this chance for change for Iran is used correctly. The Iranian people have long been virtually alone against violence – against the Iranian regime. This regime, which has killed tens of thousands of its citizens only in recent months and which has always supported and organized wars in the region, which gave Russia "shahedis" and the technology for their production, this regime itself determined the attitude towards it.

It is important to have a clear position of support for people and life. It is important that the American determination, the determination of everyone in the world, really works. I thank everyone who tries to prevent the expansion of the war, protects against strikes from Iran. And thanks, too, to everyone who is telling Russia – in the experience of the now Iranian regime – that justice is coming after all.