“World War III has begun,” says Ukraine’s former military commander amid Russian conflict

Valery Zaluzhny, former military commander-in-chief of Ukraine, believes that World War III is underway, adding that the direct involvement of Russian allies in the conflict indicates the same.

“I absolutely believe that in 2024 we can believe that World War III has started,” Mr. Zaluzhny said during a speech at Ukrainska Pravda’s UP100 award ceremony.

Currently Ukraine’s envoy to the UK, Mr Zalujni has highlighted the direct involvement of Russia’s autocratic allies as a significant factor in the war’s global expansion.

“North Korean soldiers are standing in front of Ukraine. Let’s be honest. Already in Ukraine, Iranian ‘Shahedis’ are killing civilians absolutely openly, without any shame,” he continued, pointing out that North Korean troops and Chinese weapons are now contributing actively. to war.

Mr. Zalujni called on Ukraine’s allies to take decisive action and prevent the conflict from spreading beyond the country’s borders. “It is still possible to stop it here on the territory of Ukraine. But for some reason, our partners do not want to understand this. It is obvious that Ukraine already has too many enemies,” he warned.

His comments came amid heightened tensions, with Moscow reportedly deploying more than 10,000 North Korean troops to the Kursk region and using Iranian drones and other advanced weapons against Ukraine.

“Ukraine will survive with technology, but it is not clear whether it can win this battle alone,” Mr. Zalujni said.

His speech also coincided with Russia’s use of a hypersonic ballistic missile in Dnipro, an attack that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy condemned as a severe escalation. “This is a clear and severe escalation of the scale and brutality of this war,” Zelensky said.

Valery Zaluzhny has remained a significant voice in Ukraine’s military and political discourse despite his dismissal earlier this year. Once celebrated for stopping Russia’s initial invasion in February 2022, tensions with President Zelensky led to his ouster. General Oleksandr Syrskyi replaced him, said to align more closely with Mr. Zelensky’s strategies.