Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy appealed to the Ibero-American Summit in Madrid on Thursday for urgent help to rebuild and maintain Ukraine's war-damaged energy infrastructure, calling for supplies of transformers, cables, generators and other electrical equipment, Reuters reported from Madrid on November 5.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

Addressing leaders gathered in Madrid, Zelenskiy said Russia had damaged every power plant in Ukraine through missile and drone attacks, forcing energy workers to carry out constant repairs to prevent a nationwide blackout as winter approaches.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

Zelenskiy's address delivered the Thursday programme Awaaz Punjab flagged when he landed in Madrid a day earlier — a surprise visit that put air defences first, with his meeting with Spain's prime minister set for Thursday. Read: Zelenskiy lands in Madrid in surprise visit

A shopping list, country by country

Zelenskiy named what Ukraine needs and where it hopes to get it: transformers from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia; cables from Chile; and electrical equipment and generators from Spain. He urged governments to help connect Kyiv with companies able to provide compatible equipment quickly, Reuters reported.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

"Do not remain silent" — the war-crimes appeal

Zelenskiy also called on countries not to remain silent about what he described as Russian war crimes, citing a recent attack on a school where civilians had gathered to receive humanitarian aid. He said thousands of Ukrainian children had been taken to Russia and appealed for greater international pressure on Moscow — claims he has made before and which Russia denies or disputes.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

The attack he cited matches the bombing of an aid distribution point in the village of Komyshuvakha in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region on Monday: Zaporizhzhia police said on Thursday the death toll had risen to 42, with up to 33 people still buried beneath the rubble, and Ukraine's national police said the strikes included a 3-tonne FAB glide bomb. Russia's Defence Ministry said the attack targeted Ukrainian military units around Komyshuvakha and two other settlements and that up to 25 Ukrainian servicemen were killed — the two accounts could not both be verified independently.

Source: Reuters via Q1019FM (Komyshuvakha toll), Nov 5

Awaaz Punjab has followed the Komyshuvakha rescue day by day as the toll climbed — the latest update put the dead at 42 with the search in its fourth day. Read: Komyshuvakha toll reaches 42

Sanchez: "an aggressor and a victim"

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Ukraine deserved support because there was "an aggressor and a victim", with Russia violating international law and Ukraine defending its freedom and sovereignty. Backing Kyiv was also in Europe's interest, he said, according to Reuters.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

Zelenskiy said the war had transformed modern security needs, highlighting the importance of drones, electronic warfare systems and air defences, and he invited the countries at the summit to cooperate with Ukraine on defence technology initiatives. He had travelled to Spain unexpectedly for talks on boosting Kyiv's air defences and top-level meetings held during the summit.

Source: Reuters via MyMixFM, Nov 5

What happens next

The test of the Madrid appeal is whether the named governments turn a speech into shipments: transformers and generators move slowly, and Ukraine's grid faces the winter with repair crews already working constantly, on Zelenskiy's own account. Diplomatically, the appeal lands days before the first Ukraine-Russia-US talks since February, due in Abu Dhabi on November 10-11, and alongside fresh European military aid — Italy is finalising its 13th package for Kyiv this week. For Punjabi and Indian readers, the Madrid list is also a reminder of how wide Ukraine's supply web now runs: the same summit week, India took associate-observer status at the Ibero-American grouping, putting New Delhi in the room where Kyiv is asking Latin America and Spain to keep its lights on.