Zelenskyy calls on the UN to visit the site of the strike in a shopping center in Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the United Nations to visit the site of a missile attack on a shopping center in the city of Kremenchuk while addressing the UN Security Council on Tuesday.

Speaking via video from Kyiv, the Ukrainian leader wore a trademark olive green shirt and urged council members – including Russia – to observe a minute’s silence for those killed so far in the war.

“I propose that the United Nations send either a special envoy or the United Nations Secretary-General … so that the UN can independently find information and see that this was in fact a Russian missile attack,” Zelenskyy said of Monday’s attack. in which at least 18 people were killed.

And he called on the UN to legally define the term “terrorist state,” arguing that Moscow’s February 24 invasion of his country “shows the urgent need to literally enshrine it at the United Nations level and every terrorist.” to punish the state”.

Zelenskyi was speaking at the Security Council’s emergency meeting after Monday’s rocket attack sparked a fire at a crowded shopping mall in Kremenchuk.

In addition to the 18 confirmed dead, dozens were injured and many are still missing, authorities said.

The Russian army claimed on Tuesday it struck a nearby arms depot, with the blast starting the fire at the mall, which Moscow said was “not operational” at the time.

However, local residents have denied the claim and told AFP that they knew there were no weapons stored in the area.

Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations repeated these allegations before the Security Council on Tuesday, complaining about Zelenskyy’s appearance, saying that the UN “should not be turned into a platform for a remote PR campaign for President Zelenskyy to obtain more weapons.” to get”. from NATO.

Before Zelensky spoke, Rosemary DiCarlo, the United Nations under-secretary-general for political and peacekeeping affairs, told the Security Council that the United Nations has now recorded more than 10,600 civilian casualties in Ukraine, including 4,731 deaths. She said the true toll is “substantially higher”.

Zelenskyj last spoke to the Security Council on April 5.

Ahead of the emergency meeting, France, Ireland, Norway, Great Britain, the United States and Albania, as well as the Ambassador of Ukraine, issued a joint statement saying they “strongly condemn the intensification of Russian missile attacks on Ukraine’s territory, residential areas and civilian infrastructure.” in the period from 25 to 27 June 2022.”

These included the mall strike, which they described as a “blatant attack” on civilians.

They called on Russia to immediately cease hostilities and withdraw from Ukraine.