Dear Ukrainians, everyone in the world who wants this war to end!

You all see that the Russians have changed the tactics of their strikes on Ukraine and since August they have been terrorizing our people, our cities, our villages much more. Today, September 1, when millions of children in different countries calmly go to school, here, in Ukraine, millions of children, unfortunately, are forced to go to shelters and study there, waiting there for the Russian attacks to stop. Air raids all day, "shaheeds" all day.

At night, there was another Russian ballistic missile strike on Kyiv and numerous drone strikes on our other cities. On ordinary people, on ordinary life. Russia is trying to destroy our energy sector, our infrastructure. Today, Russian missiles hit another railway depot – a place where there was definitely no military equipment and which has no impact on the war. This is purely Russian terror against civilians.

Since the beginning of this full-scale aggression, Russia has tried to block our ports, and because of Russian strikes on Ukraine, our skies are closed to civil aviation. Constantly under Russian attacks – our roads, our railways, our universities, our enterprises, even schools and churches are targets for Russians. Everything here in Ukraine. We did not choose war, and we certainly did not want this escalation. This is exclusively Russia’s desire, Putin’s desire to drag out the war and increase the scale of the strikes. It was Russian aggression that made the skies of Ukraine and Europe, and even Russia itself, dangerous. The first missiles, the first drones flew from Russia, crossed the border of our state from Russian airspace.

This escalation cannot and will not remain only on the territory of Ukraine. It is quite natural and fair that its consequences will also be in Russia, in particular in the Russian sky, which is already and will be more space for our drones, our missiles, which are actively and fairly acting in response to the Russian war, in response to Russian strikes. And we are exercising our right to self-defense - we are striking at Russian military targets and that part of the economy that works for war. This is our defense.

Today we want to warn every airline that uses Russian airspace, every insurer, everyone who still uses key Russian airports: Russian skies are becoming completely dangerous. Ukraine does not threaten civil aviation as such, nor any civilian aircraft. It is just that drones in Russian skies will be so that we need to pay attention to this. Although the Russian authorities do not report this as they should, the Russian skies will de facto be closed: the war unleashed by Russia is closing its skies. We in Ukraine do not want the loss of innocent lives. Therefore, we are warning our partners: safe moments in Russian skies are over. It is important that the ambassadors of the states working here in Ukraine and the ambassadors working in Moscow hear this. Each of them knows exactly what the Russian war means for our country, for our people, and must convey this information to their capitals. It is important that the relevant airlines, which currently fly to airports primarily in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other key Russian destinations, hear this. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and our relevant institutions will provide full information to international structures regarding the dangers in Russian skies. Civil aviation has no place among drones.

But Ukraine is a country of peace. And we truly respect the fact that our partners want to help end this war. And we support every such attempt. When the Americans asked us to pause in strikes on Moscow and St. Petersburg on August 25, 26, and 27, we withstood this pause. There were no strikes. There were strikes on Ukraine. When another world power asked us to pause in strikes for a certain time in the direction of Vladivostok, we will ensure that too. New meetings are being prepared in Moscow now, and we will take that into account. We always support every step towards peace, to ensure that Russia does not make this war endless. We need an end to the war, and the leaders are right to tell Putin this. Therefore, for the sake of diplomacy, for the sake of negotiations, when our partners ask us about this, we will ensure that the Russian sky is cleared of drones for certain periods of time and in certain directions. Security will return to the skies of Russia. It will return when a real movement towards peace begins. The sky over Russia is now for drones. Not for civil aviation. While the war continues. It is important that the world contributes to its end.

I thank everyone who is with Ukraine!

Glory to Ukraine!