President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, in his address on the afternoon of February 28, 2026, commented on the strikes by the US and Israel on targets in Iran, effectively confirming: Kyiv views what is happening as part of a common struggle against threats that have already affected not only the Middle East but also Europe.
The statement came against the backdrop of a sharp escalation in the region — after strikes on Iranian infrastructure, Tehran began missile and drone attacks on targets in the Middle East, including Israel. For Ukraine, this situation looks familiar: it was Iranian technologies and drones that became one of the tools of the Russian war against Ukrainian cities.
Zelensky’s main thesis was unequivocal:
“The Iranian regime itself chose to be an accomplice of Putin.”
According to the president of Ukraine, Kyiv never threatened Iran, but the authorities in Tehran consciously decided to help Russia — by supplying strike drones and transferring military technologies.
“We now see that events in the Middle East and the Gulf region are unfolding very rapidly. Unfortunately, Ukraine knows what this is about all too well. Although Ukrainians never threatened Iran, the Iranian regime itself chose to be an accomplice to Putin and supplied him with ‘Shaheds’, not only the drones themselves but also the technologies.
Iran also provided other weapons to Russia. In total, during this time of full-scale war, the Russians used more than 57,000 Shahed-type strike drones against Ukraine — against our people, against our cities, against our energy. Other nations also suffered from terror. Therefore, it is fair to give the Iranian people a chance to get rid of the terrorist regime and ensure the safety of all peoples who suffered from the terror originating from Iran.
Our position is well known, and Ukraine has spoken about this repeatedly, including recently. It is important to save as many lives as possible. It is important to prevent the expansion of the war. It is important that the United States is determined. And always, when there is determination from America, global criminals weaken.”
“57,000 ‘Shaheds’”: why Ukraine takes the situation personally
The Ukrainian position is based not on political sympathies but on the experience of war.
Zelensky reminded of the figure that Kyiv considers key:
“Russia used more than 57,000 Shahed-type strike drones against Ukraine — against our people, against our cities, against our energy.”
That is why Ukraine openly supports pressure on the Iranian regime. In Kyiv’s logic, a state that arms Russia during the war becomes part of the conflict.
At the same time, Zelensky separately emphasized an important thing:
“It is important to save as many lives as possible and prevent the expansion of the war.”
It is about the regime, not the people of Iran
The Ukrainian position fundamentally separates the government and society.
Zelensky effectively explained: responsibility lies with the political regime, not the citizens of the country.
“It is fair to give the Iranian people a chance to get rid of the terrorist regime.”
The same thought was repeated by the Ukrainian diplomatic mission in Israel, spreading a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, which emphasizes:
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine confirms the unwavering position of our state: we support the Iranian people and their legitimate aspiration to live in safety, freedom, and prosperity.
The Iranian regime, which has been mocking the Iranian people for decades, has launched a large-scale policy of violence against its own citizens and other countries. This includes massive human rights violations within the country, support for militants who brought chaos to other states in the region, and direct military support to the aggressor state — Russia — in its unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine. We remember and will never forget the strikes of thousands of ‘Shaheds’ on our peaceful cities and people.
Such cooperation between the regimes in Moscow and Tehran is a gross violation of international law and undermines global efforts to restore peace and stability.
Long-term systematic human rights violations, brutal repressions, executions, and persecution of dissenters indicate a deep crisis in the internal policy of this state and the lack of proper protection of the basic rights and freedoms of its citizens.
The regime spent enormous resources precisely on violence, killings, and chaos, rather than on providing for its own people, whose economic situation has been deteriorating year by year. As President of Ukraine has repeatedly emphasized, the Iranian regime should have left long ago.
The reason for the current events is precisely the violence and arbitrariness of the Iranian regime, in particular the killings and repressions against peaceful protesters, which have recently acquired especially large-scale character.
We emphasize that the regime in Tehran had every opportunity to prevent a violent scenario. They were given opportunities for diplomacy and finding solutions, but the regime ignored these efforts and instead only stalled for time, hoping to mislead the international community.
We reaffirm our unwavering position: we wish safety, prosperity, and freedom to the Iranian people, as well as stability and prosperity to the Middle East. We thank everyone in the world who supported and continues to support the Iranian people in this difficult time.”
Overall security picture: Ukraine, Israel, and US allies
In Kyiv, what is happening is viewed more broadly than just a Middle Eastern crisis. Ukrainian authorities are effectively talking about the coincidence of threats directed against countries that are in the same security space.
Iranian drones are used against Ukraine.
Missiles are launched at Israel.
Tensions are rising around American objects in the region.
In this logic, it is no longer about different conflicts, but about intersecting fronts of one geopolitical reality.
That is why Ukraine has taken a maximally clear position of supporting the actions of the US and Israel.
Why questions arise at all “and what justifies this”
The editorial board of NANovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency draws attention to the noticeable reaction on social networks. In different countries — from Europe to the post-Soviet space — questions are actively being asked: “why was it necessary to attack Iran?” or “why did Israel and the US go for it”.
At first glance, this looks like a natural desire to avoid war. However, part of such reactions is formed in an information environment that for many years was under the influence of Russian and even Soviet political optics — where any actions by the US and Israel are automatically interpreted as “aggression”, and regimes opposing the West are presented as victims of pressure.
Even within Israel, part of the Russian-speaking media space has remained connected to this information field for decades. Therefore, discussions often begin not with the causes of the conflict, but immediately with accusations of those who respond to it.
However, if you remove the slogans and look at the situation consistently, the picture looks different.
The editorial board of NANovosti formulates it this way — in essence and by points.
Iran has been suspected for years of moving towards creating nuclear weapons. One can argue about the stages of the program and the details of intelligence data, but the trajectory of development itself and the possible consequences are too serious to ignore this factor.
Iran is associated with supporting armed groups and proxy structures in the region that attacked Israel and destabilized neighboring countries. It is important to clarify: with ISIS, Iran has a separate, rather hostile history — however, the list of allied forces and organizations to Tehran remains long even without this.
Tehran has been using rhetoric of destroying Israel and opposing the West for decades. This is not a matter of political formulations — such a line directly affects strategic security calculations in the Middle East.
Iran has become a key ally of Moscow in the war against Ukraine: it was Iranian drones and technologies that became part of Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.
Within the country itself, there remains a heavy background of repression, suppression of protests, and systemic violence. One can argue about the scales of comparisons, but the fact remains: the state system has been holding society through fear and forceful pressure for many years.
The political model of power is built around a rigid religious vertical, where any serious changes are blocked by power structures.
Women were punished and even killed for not following dress codes — and this is also considered by many countries as part of the overall model of state violence, not as an internal cultural dispute.
That is why the question gradually changes. No longer “why did the strike happen”, but why the situation has been moving for years to the point where forceful containment was considered the only remaining tool.
Position of the editorial board of NANovosti
And here the position of the editorial board sounds humanly — without a thirst for war and without radical rhetoric.
We want to see a peaceful, normal Iran. The Persian people command respect: this is a country with a huge history, culture, and civilizational heritage.
But leaving regimes of this type without containment means repeatedly increasing the risk of new wars, technological threats, and the expansion of terrorism beyond the region.
Therefore, support for the actions of Israel and the US in this logic is not seen as support for war or violence.
It is an attempt to stop a system that simultaneously suppressed its own citizens and exported threats beyond the country.
What next
Ukraine today speaks as directly as possible: the security of different regions is increasingly interconnected.
Support for the actions of the US and Israel from Kyiv is explained not by political sympathies, but by its own experience of war — when decisions made thousands of kilometers away begin to destroy cities and take lives.
At the same time, the key signal that Zelensky repeats separately:
“It is important to save as many lives as possible.”
And it is this balance — determination along with the desire to prevent a large war — that today becomes the main line of international policy around what is happening.