Zelenskyy criticises "calls and meetings" with Putin amidst massive strikes on Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a statement regarding "calls and meetings" with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin in the midst of Russia's large-scale attacks on Ukrainian territories.

Commenting on the recent missile attack by Russian forces on a residential neighbourhood in Odesa, which killed eight people, Zelenskyy recalled German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's call to Putin.

"These are not random attacks; these are indicative attacks. After calls and meetings with Putin, after all the false gossip in the media about the alleged ‘restraint’ from further strikes," he stated on Twitter (X).

Zelenskyy emphasised: Russia demonstrates that it is determined to continue the war. 

"And this signal is worth hearing in all parts of the world, from the halls where G20 members meet to all the capitals of the world," he emphasised.

On the night of 16-17 November, Russian forces launched a combined missile and drone attack on Ukraine's energy sector facilities with 210 missiles and UAVs on the night of 16-17 November. Ukrainian air defence units have destroyed 144 of them. On the same day, the Russians attacked Sumy, killing 11 people as of the morning of 18 November.

On the afternoon of 15 November, it was reported that Scholz had spoken to Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin for the first time in two years. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy labelled the call a "Pandora's box".