Rubio to meet Lavrov in New York on Wednesday during UN General Assembly
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New York on Wednesday, September 23, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session. The meeting comes a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky met President Donald Trump in New York, and against statements from both Moscow and Washington suggesting no ceasefire is currently in place.
Key points
- Rubio–Lavrov meeting scheduled for Wednesday, September 23, in New York
- Meeting takes place during the UN General Assembly session
- Announcement of the meeting was made by the US State Department, as reported by Reuters
- Zelensky met Trump in New York on September 22, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly
- US delegation to that meeting included Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner
- Ukrainian delegation included Kyrylo Budanov, Rustem Umerov, Andriy Sybiha, Davyd Arakhamia, and Pavlo Palisa
- Rubio said there are currently no ceasefire agreements between Ukraine and Russia and no prospect of a decisive military victory for either side
Why it matters
The Rubio–Lavrov meeting takes place against statements from both sides that suggest no breakthrough on a ceasefire is imminent: Lavrov said Russia will not stop fighting while negotiations are under way, and Rubio said there is currently no ceasefire agreement and no prospect of a decisive military victory. The meeting follows directly on the Zelensky–Trump talks and is set against Ukrainian-reported understandings on Patriot production licensing and conditional energy-strike restraint.
What happened
The US State Department announced that Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New York on Wednesday, September 23, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session. The announcement, reported by Reuters, came a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky met President Donald Trump in New York on September 22. The US side in those talks included Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner; the Ukrainian side included Head of the Office of the President Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service Rustem Umerov, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha, head of the Servant of the People faction Davyd Arakhamia, and Deputy Head of the Office of the President Pavlo Palisa. Zelensky described the meeting with Trump as "positive" and "productive" and said Trump was positively disposed toward granting Ukraine licenses to produce Patriot missiles. He said the US did not ask Ukraine for a unilateral halt to strikes on Russian energy infrastructure, and that Ukraine is ready for any format of energy ceasefire provided it is reciprocal — including a Russian commitment not to attack Ukraine's energy and water systems. Zelensky also said both sides want the war to end before winter and repeated his readiness for personal talks with Vladimir Putin. Rubio, for his part, said there is currently no ceasefire agreement between Ukraine and Russia, that the war is disadvantageous for both Kyiv and Moscow, and that no side will achieve a decisive military victory; he expressed hope that the war would end through a deal reached via negotiations, and said American negotiators are working to end the confrontation. Lavrov is expected to address the UN General Assembly on September 26 and stated the previous week that Russia will not stop fighting in Ukraine while possible negotiations are ongoing.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian sources center Zelensky's framing of the Trump meeting as "positive" and "productive" and emphasize that the US did not press Ukraine for a unilateral halt to strikes on Russian energy infrastructure. They highlight Zelensky's stated conditions for an energy ceasefire — reciprocity, scope covering water supply, and linkage to Russia's behavior — and reiterate his readiness for direct talks with Putin. The composition of the Ukrainian delegation in New York is detailed as evidence of the breadth of Kyiv's engagement on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.