United Nations General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly is the main deliberative body of the United Nations, in which all member states are represented. It comprises six committees and holds annual sessions addressing key issues of international policy, human rights, development, and security. Its resolutions are non-binding but reflect the position of the world community. Its headquarters are in New York.
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Ukrainian drone strike halts Moscow oil refinery on day of State Duma vote
On the night of 20 September, Ukrainian forces struck the Gazpromneft-Moscow refinery in the Kapotnya district of Moscow with a combined drone and missile attack, setting both primary crude distillation units ablaze and forcing a full halt of oil processing. Ukraine's General Staff says cumulative strikes have now knocked out more than 45% of Russia's designed oil refining capacity. The attack fell on the day of Russia's State Duma election, with Moscow authorities not activating air raid sirens or SMS warnings, an omission analysts at the Institute for the Study of War linked to a priority on voter turnout over civilian safety.
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Ukrainian churches appeal to Pope Leo XIV over humanitarian crisis in occupied Oleshky
The All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations has appealed to Pope Leo XIV, the UN, the ICRC and other religious bodies to intervene in what it calls a humanitarian catastrophe in Russian-occupied Oleshky in Kherson Oblast. Ukraine says the city has had no food deliveries since late May 2026, with civilians cut off from supplies and prevented from leaving, and announced it will raise the situation at the UN General Assembly High-Level Week.
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Zelensky and Trump agree to meet in New York after phone call; Trump presses on Russian oil strikes
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held a phone call with US President Donald Trump on the evening of 20 September, during which the two leaders agreed to a personal meeting in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. Zelensky publicly framed the call as constructive, thanked Trump for the recent visit of US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Kyiv, and for signing the Lindsey Graham sanctions law against Russia. According to Axios sources, Trump repeatedly asked Zelensky to stop Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, citing rising global diesel prices.
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EU to send Ukraine additional €3.3 billion for missiles and drones
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced, after a phone call with President Volodymyr Zelensky, that the EU would allocate an additional €3.3 billion to Ukraine for missiles and drones, to be disbursed on Friday, 18 September, under the Ukraine Support Loan program. The announcement was paired with a proposed new joint EU–Ukraine defense initiative, funded through remaining SAFE program funds, aimed at developing a European air and missile defense system based on the joint Freya/Freyja anti-ballistic system.
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Zelensky says he may meet Trump in New York to push for energy and Black Sea ceasefire
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a telethon interview aired on September 14 that he may meet US President Donald Trump in New York on September 21–23 during the UN General Assembly high-level week. The talks would focus on an energy ceasefire and a pause in mutual strikes on the Black Sea ahead of winter, with Zelensky saying Ukraine is open to a maritime-plus-energy ceasefire even if Russia will not agree to a full end to the war.
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Trump announces Russia–Ukraine energy-strike deal; Kyiv says no agreement exists yet
On September 14, US President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to mutually stop targeting each other's energy facilities. Neither Kyiv nor Moscow confirmed the claim. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was ready to refrain from striking Russian infrastructure only if partners guarantee Russia would stop striking Ukrainian energy and other critical infrastructure, and he stressed no final deal exists.
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Zelensky warns of retaliation if Russia hits Ukraine's energy system, proposes 'energy ceasefire' in talks
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on September 11 that Ukraine will respond "with dignity" if Russia strikes its energy system or causes blackouts this winter, while also outlining a negotiating alternative that includes an "energy ceasefire" and unblocking the Black Sea. He spoke during a conversation with journalist Fareed Zakaria at the Yalta European Strategy 2026 meeting and in a Telegram post, calling for continued prisoner exchanges and the return of Ukrainian children held in Russia.
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Ukraine and Canada advance Drone Deal, first with a country on the American continent
President Zelensky and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney inspected drones in Alberta that will operate under a Ukraine–Canada Drone Deal, with the full agreement expected to be signed at the end of September during the UN General Assembly in New York. Under the deal, Canada is prepared to order large volumes of drones, with 30% of production transferred to Ukraine.
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Zelensky says he expects to meet Trump in late September, with missile defense set as main topic
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on September 8 that he expects to meet US President Donald Trump in the 20s of September, with the supply of American anti-ballistic interceptor missiles as the central item. The announcement came the morning after a massive Russian strike on Kyiv in which most ballistic missiles could not be intercepted, and follows a visit to Kyiv and Moscow by US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner that yielded a short-lived mutual moratorium on capital strikes.
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Ukraine's Diia portal opens four new claim categories in international Register of Damage
Ukraine's Diia portal launched four new categories of applications to the international Register of Damage for Ukraine (RD4U). The categories cover loss of access to medical care, loss of access to education, other violations of international law, and other economic losses. Applications are submitted through the Diia portal and forwarded automatically to the Register.
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US envoys visit Kyiv for first time, signal return to trilateral talks but report no breakthrough
US special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner travelled to Kyiv on 6 September 2026 for their first visit to Ukraine since Donald Trump's second presidential term began, after meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow on 5 September. They held three rounds of talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, joined in the second round by national security advisers from France, Germany and the United Kingdom, and announced a planned return to the US–Ukraine–Russia trilateral format and US support for a 'winter package' of assistance for Ukraine. Zelensky reported receiving a message that 'the Russians are ready to negotiate' but remained sceptical, while the Kremlin, Bloomberg sources and the Institute for the Study of War said the Moscow talks produced no substantive concessions.
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UN adopts Equal Earth map as Ukraine abstains over Crimea depiction
The UN General Assembly adopted the Equal Earth world map projection on September 4, with 164 states voting in favor and the United States against. Ukraine abstained because the map shows occupied Crimea separated from the rest of Ukraine in a lighter shade distinct from both Ukrainian and Russian coloring. Ukraine's Permanent Mission warned that the depiction could "open a Pandora's box" and contradict UN resolutions on Ukraine's territorial integrity.