At the General Assembly, Zelenskyy mentioned Zarutska and Kirk, two Ukrainians killed in the United States

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during his speech at the UN General Assembly, mentioned killed in America Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska and the far-right activist Charlie Kirk.

The head of state reminded that the day before, on September 23, from this rostrum performed American president Donald Trump, noting that he survived an assassination attempt in 2024: "He was shot with a rifle, and his life really hung in the balance."

"A few days ago, the president, along with hundreds of thousands of Americans paid tribute to Charlie Kirk: unfortunately, his life was cut short by a bullet. We also mourned the death of Ukrainian woman Iryna Zarutska, who was brutally murdered with a knife here in America, where she sought refuge from the Russian war," Zelenskyy added.

He noted that almost every day "we see news of violent attacks and assaults around the world."

"Most of them are carried out with weapons that people are familiar with, but weapons are developing faster than our ability to defend ourselves," the president said.

The politician emphasized that "tens of thousands of people" have now learned to kill professionally with the help of drones.

"It is much harder to stop them than knives or even bombs. This is what Russia has done with its war. Previously, only the most powerful states could afford drones, they were expensive and complex. And now, even simple drones can fly thousands of kilometers, they change even the geography itself," Zelenskyy added, mentioning, among other things, a recent incident in Denmark and Norway.

• The murder of the 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee in Charlotte, North Carolina, took place in late August, but the crime became public knowledge in early September after a video of the attack was published: the attacker stabbed Zarutska from behind on public transportation.
• The video was shared on social media and in the media. US President Trump also reacted to the incident, calling for the suspect to be convicted to the death penalty, and also used the tragedy of the to criticize their Democratic opponents as the defendant was not imprisoned for previous crimes.