Germany urges Putin to stop dangerous escalation against NATO as Russia-Ukraine war intensifies

Germany has urged Vladimir Putin to stop Russia’s “dangerous path of escalation” against it and other Nato countries and find a peaceful end to the war in Ukraine.

The German foreign minister Johann Wadephul met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Saturday, although Lavrov later said the talks led to no meaningful breakthrough.

Lavrov dismissed Wadephul’s concerns and instead accused Germany of prolonging the war by supporting Ukraine. In his speech later to the General Assembly, he said: “Does Berlin understand what this could lead to? Didn’t they not learn the lessons of World War II?”

Meanwhile, both Russia and Ukraine ramped up their aerial attacks on Saturday, with at least 10 people killed across both countries, despite Donald Trump’s plea for a peace deal.

Mr Trump told Zelensky to make a deal with Vladimir Putin to end the war at the UN General Assembly earlier this week in New York.

“You know what I want him to do? Make a deal,” the president told Fox News. “I want him to settle with Putin and I want Putin to settle with him.”

German foreign minister says Lavrov meeting driven by Russia security concerns

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said ​on Sunday his decision to meet Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov was driven by security concerns and to address a growing food-export crisis.

Lavrov and Wadephul met in New York on the ⁠sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday, marking the first such talks since before Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Wadephul said Russia's alleged deployment of armed drones at Leipzig airport had crossed a line and made it ⁠necessary to communicate directly that Germany ​was ⁠prepared to defend itself.

"Russia has to understand that we are ready to resist and to defend ourselves," Wadephul said in ⁠an interview with ARD.

The meeting also came amid diplomatic efforts ​to ⁠revive Russia and Ukraine's Black ‌Sea grain and energy exports that have been sharply curtailed by attacks on vessels and port infrastructure.

"A number of colleagues, especially from the ‌Global South, asked me to speak with Russia," ‌Wadephul said, citing this as the second reason for the talks.

"There is a threat of famine there, and that is why I am advocating for a ceasefire ⁠in the Black Sea," he added.

Alex Ross27 September 2026 20:10

Watch: 20 rescued after Kyiv residential building hit in Russian attack

Daniel Haygarth27 September 2026 18:00

Zelenskyy says he urged Trump to enlist China's help in ending Russia's invasion

Ukraine's Zelenskyy says he urged Trump to enlist China's help in ending Russia's invasion

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has asked U.S. President Donald Trump to urge China to influence Russia to ends its invasion of Ukraine

Dan Haygarth27 September 2026 17:00

Early results show Swiss voters are on track to reject a push to tighten neutrality rules

Early projections on Sunday suggested voters in Switzerland were on track to reject a right-wing proposal aimed at the strict implementation of the country’s neutrality.

Backers of the plan, championed by the Swiss People’s Party that has members with pro-Russia leanings, insist the government has gravitated too close to the European Union and NATO, notably over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The proposal followed Switzerland’s decision to join EU sanctions against Russia. It aims to prohibit the Alpine country from joining punitive measures against hostile countries except United Nations sanctions.

Russia wields a veto on the UN Security Council as one of its five permanent members.

Switzerland has been committed to neutrality, enshrined in the constitution since the mid-19th century. Swiss neutrality has faced years of debate over what it really means.

Projections from the Swiss public broadcaster SRG, based partly on information from polling agency gfs bern and initial counts from the government, indicated that more than two-thirds of voters rejected the idea.

A final official count is expected later Sunday. Polls closed at noon local time; most voters cast ballots by mail.

Switzerland is not a member of any military alliance. However, if the proposal passed, it would bar the Swiss government from even cooperating with any alliance — as it has with NATO for three decades, including through joint exercises — except in cases of threat.

Supporters claim that the government has moved “dangerously close” to the EU and NATO in ways that threaten Switzerland's security and independence of action.

Opponents, including the federal government and parliament, say the constitution already gives the federal government the leeway it needs to protect national interests.

Dan Haygarth27 September 2026 16:00

Russian strikes kill 2 in Ukraine after Moscow rejects German calls to de-escalate

Russian strikes on Ukraine killed at least two people overnight into Sunday, officials said, hours after Moscow rejected German calls to ease off its escalation toward NATO.

Russia’s top diplomat on Saturday brushed off what’s believed to have been the first tête-à-tête with his German counterpart since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The meeting was held during the UN General Assembly’s annual gathering of world leaders, as an intensifying aerial war between Russia and Ukraine shows no sign of slowing.

Ties between Russia and Germany have soured in recent weeks, following an attempted drone attack last month at Leipzig airport that Berlin blamed on the Kremlin.

With front-line positions largely unchanged since last year, Moscow has hammered its neighbour with cruise and ballistic missiles, powerful glide bombs and jet-powered drones in recent months. Meanwhile, Kyiv’s long-range drones have targeted Russian oil refineries and businesses.

In Kyiv, a man was found dead after a Russian drone hit a non-residential building overnight, according to Ukraine’s emergency service.

Another drone struck a single-story vehicle repair shop, leaving firefighters battling the blaze into early Sunday, the emergency service said.

Russian forces also struck Ukraine’s southern Odesa region, which surrounds the country’s main Black Sea port, multiple times overnight into Sunday, killing one person and injuring two others, according to the head of the local military administration, Oleh Kiper.

In Russian-occupied Ukraine, a strike by Kyiv's forces on Sunday killed a civilian woman in Enerhodar, the town housing Europe's largest nuclear plant, according to its Kremlin-installed mayor. Maxim Pukhov said the Ukrainian drones also injured two others.

Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly blamed each other for damaging power lines supplying Enerhodar's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which Moscow captured early in the war. The plant is not in service, but needs power to keep cooling systems running and maintain safety.

Dan Haygarth27 September 2026 15:00

Watch: Zelensky slams Putin's 'lame excuses' for not ending war in Ukraine

Dan Haygarth27 September 2026 14:14

Two dead in Russian strikes on Kyiv and Odesa

Russian strikes on Ukraine killed at least two people overnight into Sunday, officials said.

In Kyiv, a man was found dead after a Russian drone hit a non-residential building overnight, according to Ukraine’s emergency service.

Another drone struck a single-story vehicle repair shop, leaving firefighters battling the blaze into early Sunday.

Russian forces also struck Ukraine’s southern Odesa region, which surrounds the country’s main Black Sea port, multiple times overnight into Sunday, killing one person and injuring two others, according to the head of the local military administration, Oleh Kiper.

Adam Withnall27 September 2026 12:45

Inside the real war games as Europe readies for an attack by Russia

Sky’s docu-drama The Wargame has landed right in the middle of a time of real-world crisis. But the true danger is the potential for hysteria, fear and miscalculation to turn a shadow war into something much worse, as Owen Matthews explains:

Inside the real war games as Europe readies for an attack by Russia

As warnings increase about a Russian attack on a NATO country, real-world war-games, whether played out around a conference table or on the ground as military exercises, are happening all the time. But the real danger is the potential for hysteria, fear and miscalculation to turn a shadow war into something much worse, writes Owen Matthews

Adam Withnall27 September 2026 12:01

Europe’s far-right turmoil is only the beginning – all the signs point to worse to come

John Kampfner writes about the terrifying surge of the far right across Europe, and why it’s only good news for Russia:

Europe’s far-right turmoil is only the start – all the signs point to worse to come

Germany has provided the warning. Now elections across Europe will test whether nationalist and populist parties can turn growing support into lasting political power. John Kampfner reports on the terrifying surge of the far right across Europe and why it’s good news for Russia

Adam Withnall27 September 2026 11:00

Russia says it struck military infrastructure and vessel in Ukraine

The Russian defence ministry said on Sunday its forces had carried out overnight drone strikes on logistics centres, port and transport infrastructure, as well as communications centres and vessels that Moscow said were linked to the Ukrainian military.

The ​ministry said ⁠the strikes ‌hit a data centre in Kyiv, logistic hubs ‌in the Kyiv and ‌Odesa regions, two drone storages in Mykolaiv, headquarters ⁠of a naval base as well as of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine and four military storages in the ‌Kiliya port, and ​a cargo ship ‌carrying military ⁠and dual-use goods to ⁠the port of Odesa.

Adam Withnall27 September 2026 09:34