Zelensky: People in Russian bombed mall deserve same right to security as those in Tel Aviv

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday Russia must be labeled a “state sponsor of terrorism” after a missile strike on a crowded shopping mall in the city of Kremenchuk killed at least 20 people.

“People in a mall in Kremenchuk have the same right to security as people at a mall anywhere in the world — be it Philadelphia or Tel Aviv,” he says, adding that Ukraine needs a credible defense system against Russian missiles.

“Only total insane terrorists, who should have no place on Earth, can strike missiles at civilian objects,” Zelensky said on his Telegram channel, accusing Russia of carrying out “calculated strikes” at civilian infrastructure.

“Russia must be recognized as a state sponsor of terrorism. The world can and therefore must stop Russian terror,” Zelensky added.

On Monday, a Russian missile strike hit a shopping center in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk while there were around a thousand people inside.

The Ukrainian president’s deputy chief of staff, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, told a press briefing on Tuesday that “over 20 people” died in the attack, updating an earlier death toll of 18.

He added that over 40 people were still missing.