Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. File photo.
Madrid: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reached out to Latin American leaders on Thursday to assist Kyiv in repairing damaged power infrastructure.
"Every power plant in Ukraine has been damaged in one way or another by attacks," he told a summit in Madrid, adding that repair crews were working around the clock to restore electricity supplies.
"We need as much international cooperation as possible to continue rebuilding and repairing our energy system," he told a meeting on the sidelines of a summit of the Ibero-American Community, a 22-nation group of mainly Latin American Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries.
Those attending included Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo, Honduran President Nasry Asfura, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and European Council President Antonio Costa.
"We know that companies in Spain and Latin America can help with this, can support this," Zelensky said, citing potential supplies of transformers from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia, and power cables from Chile.
He also called on Spanish manufacturers to provide electrical equipment, cables and generators.
"We need equipment that works with our power grid, and we need it fast," Zelensky said, urging leaders to facilitate direct contacts with companies and manufacturers to speed up deliveries.
