Zelenskyy wishes Putin would 'perish' in Christmas Eve address

In his traditional address to Ukrainians on Christmas Eve, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his compatriots have one wish as "the heavens open" on this night — the death of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Since ancient times, Ukrainians have believed that, on Christmas night, the heavens open. And if you tell them your dream, it will surely come true. Today, we all share one dream. And we make one wish – for all of us," Zelenskyy said.

"'May he perish,' each of us may think to ourselves," the Ukrainian leader stated, referring to Putin without naming him. "But when we turn to God, of course, we ask for something greater."

"We ask for peace for Ukraine. We fight for it. And we pray for it. And we deserve it," Zelenskyy said, adding that Ukrainians wish for every family to live in harmony and for every child to rejoice in gifts, smiles and faith in goodness and miracles.

No ceasefire for Christmas

Since launching its full-scale invasion in early 2022, Russia has used the Christmas period to launch major attacks on Ukraine rather than agree on ceasefires.

On 25 December 2022, during Ukraine's first Christmas of the all-out war, Moscow launched a major missile and drone attack targeting energy infrastructure that caused widespread blackouts and civilian casualties.

Putin ordered his army to observe a ceasefire between 6 and 7 January 2023 — Christmas Eve and Christmas Day according to the Julian calendar, which some Eastern Orthodox churches follow. However, fighting continued and by midday on 7 January, Ukrainian authorities reported at least three people killed and 14 injured during Russian attacks across at least seven regions.

In 2023, Russian drone strikes killed four people in Kherson as Ukraine officially celebrated Christmas on 25 December for the first time, having changed from the traditional 7 January Eastern Orthodox date.

Last year, Russia launched more than 70 missiles and over 100 drones on 25 December, killing at least one person and leaving half a million people without heating in Kharkiv region.

"For the fourth year in a row – the fourth year of the full-scale war for independence – there have been attempts to take all of this away from us," Zelenskyy said on Wednesday night.

"And this is exactly what we are defending today: our land, our families, that longed-for feeling of peace and calm in our own home," he said. "When we are warm. When we have a delicious meal. When we are together. And despite everything, we are together today as well."

"And that is how it will be today, because it does not matter whether we are apart or face to face, Ukrainians are together," Zelenskyy added.

Drone strikes continue amid peace plan discussions

Ukrainian president's address came on the same day when he revealed the specifics of the US-led peace deal, stating that Ukraine and the US have reached a consensus on several key issues aimed at ending Russia's nearly four-year war.

However, territorial control in Ukraine’s eastern regions and the management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant remain unresolved.

The future of Ukraine's eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, known together as the Donbas, remains at the heart of the talks, in what Zelenskyy described while discussing the plan as “the most difficult point”.

Russia continues to assert maximalist demands, insisting that Ukraine relinquish the remaining territory in Donbas that it has not captured — an ultimatum that Kyiv has rejected.

Moscow was expected to respond to the 20-point plan on Wednesday. However, Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said later in the day that the Kremlin will "take into account" what Washington communicated to Putin "to formulate our further positions".

Meanwhile, Russia launched 131 drones against Ukraine on Christmas Eve, according to Ukrainian air force. Two people were killed and 35 injured across multiple regions, including Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Sumy, regional authorities reported.

On Wednesday night, Zelenskyy expressed hope that goodness and truth would prevail. "That there may be a victory of peace. That there may be us. And that there may be Ukraine."