Europe must prepare for drone strikes by terrorists and criminals, warns Zelenskyy

Ukraine’s president says mass attacks on civilians are no longer the preserve of a ‘madman like Putin’ European nations should prepare for attacks by non-state actors including criminal networks, terror groups and lone attackers as drone technology advances, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned. The Ukrainian president said it was no longer just “a wealthy madman like Putin” who could afford mass attacks as he demonstrated the latest technology to British MPs and peers. Zelenskyy said the regimes in Moscow and Tehran were “brothers in hatred”, with Russia using Iranian-designed Shahed drones, as well as its own variants of them, to attack critical infrastructure in Ukraine. His UK visit came as Keir Starmer said the west must not “lose focus” on Ukraine amid concerns that the Iran conflict had revived Russia’s ailing economy by increasing oil revenue and Kyiv could miss out on air defence systems being deployed to the Middle East instead. The prime minister said: “Putin can’t be the one who benefits from the conflict in Iran, whether that’s oil prices or the dropping of sanctions. It is really important we keep our resolve in relation to supporting Ukraine, doing everything we can to wea