Volodymyr Zelenskyy has criticised his Western allies for not defending Ukraine against Russia in the same way they rushed to support Israel over the weekend.

Iran tried to attack Israel via a series of drones and missiles on Saturday night, prompting Western allies to quickly release their own fighter jets in an effort to protect the Middle Eastern country.

In a post on X on Monday night, the Ukrainian president praised this response – but asked why the West had never defended Ukraine in the same way.

He said: “The entire world witnessed allied action in the skies above Israel and neighbouring countries.

“It demonstrated how truly effective unity in defending against terror can be when it is based on sufficient political will.”

He noted that the US, the UK, France and Jordan worked together to protect Israel over the weekend, claiming this prevented “further escalation” – although Israel is expected to retaliate soon.

Still, as Zelenskyy pointed out, neither Israel nor Ukraine are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato), the military alliance where an attack on one member state is perceived as an attack on all member states.

The West has regularly used this caveat to explain away its decision not to get directly involved in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over the last two years – but the Ukrainian president suggested Israel did not face the same obstacle.

Pointing to the level of violence Russia has inflicted upon Ukraine, and comparing the air strikes on both countries, Zelenskyy said: “The impact of ballistic missiles, if they are not intercepted, is the same everywhere.”

“European skies could have received the same level of protection long ago if Ukraine had received similar full support from its partners in intercepting drones and missiles,” he continued.

“Terror must be defeated completely and everywhere, not more in some places and less in others.”

While extending his thanks to those who have provided equipment and funding to the Ukrainian war effort so far, he called for further “unity”.

“We can now see how unity can work truly a hundred percent, and how almost a hundred percent of ‘Shaheds’ [drones] and missiles can be intercepted.”

Zelenskyy issued a similar warning on Monday, saying: “Words do not stop drones and do not intercept missiles. Only tangible assistance does.”