Ukraine's former military Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny said that the direct involvement of Russia's autocratic allies in its war on Ukraine means that World War III has started, Politico reported.

"I believe that in 2024 we can absolutely believe that the Third World War has begun," said Zaluzhny, who is now Ukraine's envoy to the United Kingdom, during a speech at Ukrainska Pravda's UP100 award ceremony.

"Because in 2024, Ukraine is no longer facing Russia. Soldiers from North Korea are standing in front of Ukraine. Let's be honest. Already in Ukraine, the Iranian 'Shahedis' are killing civilians absolutely openly, without any shame," said Zaluzhny, adding that North Korean and Chinese weapons are flying into Ukraine.

Zaluzhny urged Ukraine's allies to draw the right conclusions.

"It is still possible to stop it here, on the territory of Ukraine. But for some reason our partners do not want to understand this. It is obvious that Ukraine already has too many enemies. Ukraine will survive with technology, but it is not clear whether it can win this battle alone," he said.

Zaluzhny's speech at the ceremony is in line with his grim outlook of the war. In similar comments in his essay for The Economist last year that infuriated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Zaluzhny compared the state of the conflict to a stalemate like World War I.

Zelenskyy fired Zaluzhny in February after rising tensions between the two on how the war in Ukraine should be fought — as well as Zaluzhny's growing popularity, which made him a potential political threat.

Zaluzhny was credited for successfully halting and pushing back Russia's initial attack launched on Feb. 24, 2022, which was later tarnished by the failure of last year's counteroffensive. His role was taken over by General Oleksandr Syrskyi, who is seen as closer to the president.

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