Ukraine War: Developments on the front lines, diplomatic initiatives and sabotage warnings

Federal Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul met with his Russian colleague Sergei Lavrov in New York. The first bilateral meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries in years took place on the sidelines of the UN general debate.

Danish military intelligence has warned of a growing risk that Russia could carry out a limited attack on a neighboring NATO country - even as Moscow remains bound by its war in Ukraine. “The situation is serious,” Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus said at a press conference in Copenhagen. "It is more serious today than at any time since the end of the Cold War. As citizens, we must remain vigilant and closely follow developments both here in Denmark and across Europe."

Poland's Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has also said that Russia is preparing “something big” this year. He said this after a meeting with Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov in New York, as reported by Polish radio station RMF FM. There are fears in Belarus that the country could be drawn into the war in the event of an escalation on the border with the Baltics, said Sikorski.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic discussed the Ukraine conflict and cooperation in the energy sector in a telephone conversation, the Kremlin announced.

Ukrainian forces have hit the Ilsky oil refinery in the southern Russian region of Krasnodar in a nighttime attack. The military in Kyiv announced this. A statement from the General Staff said that a fire had broken out at the facility.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj is asking Ukraine's partners for an additional $27 billion for defense. Defense costs have increased, Zelenskyy tells journalists via WhatsApp. Ukraine must order drones in October and November, otherwise it will face challenges at the beginning of next year. “Everyone understands that Ukraine cannot be alone and that more investment must be made in Ukrainian drones and missiles.” Kyiv asked the EU to bring forward part of a loan. He received a positive response from EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin doubts whether negotiations will be resumed to end the war in Ukraine. Approaches aimed at a “so-called pacification” and a proposal to resume negotiations are on the table, everything is possible, he said at a cultural forum in St. Petersburg. “But after everything they have done, we will think carefully about what we need to do in response,” Putin said, referring to Ukrainian counterattacks.

He particularly criticized Ukraine for its attacks on Russia during last weekend's parliamentary elections. Russia is forced to react to this. Putin himself ordered the large-scale invasion of Ukraine at the end of February 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says he still believes a negotiated solution to the war in Ukraine is possible. According to Russian agencies, he says that all proposals for resolving the conflict are on the table. At the same time, he accuses Ukraine of having provoked people through attacks on Moscow and polling stations. Kyiv must now pay the price and feel Russian retaliation. Moscow must think carefully about its reaction to Kiev's actions, the president continued.

A few days after the Russian parliamentary election, the independent political scientist Alexander Kynew was arrested in Russia. His lawyer confirmed the arrest to several Russian media outlets and announced that he would take action against it. Kynew therefore denies the allegations. According to an entry on the website of a Moscow court, he is accused of illegally producing, selling or distributing drugs on a large scale.

According to the Russian state news agency Tass, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Kynev is a well-known political scientist who specializes in elections and regional politics in Russia. He commented intensively on the Duma election last weekend. It was initially unclear exactly when he was arrested.

Three people are killed in a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian capital Kiev. Seven other people were injured, as Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced on the short message service Telegram. According to preliminary information, cars are burning in a parking lot near an office building hit by a drone, where the bodies of the three victims were found.

The US has proposed a three-way meeting with Ukraine and Russia in the United Arab Emirates to discuss an end to the war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj said this on Friday in a press conference via WhatsApp. The US side suggested a working-level meeting in a trilateral format.

“We are waiting for a date proposal from the US side, which has brought the Emirates into play as a possible conference location,” said Zelensky. According to Russian information, such a three-way meeting could take place soon. However, there are no details yet, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday. Peskov also said that Russian special envoy Kirill Dmitriyev had held talks in the USA.

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian budget hole of over 23 billion euros endangers the financing of drone purchases that are important for the war effort. “If we don’t order and pay for them in October and November, then we will have serious problems in January and February,” the head of state told journalists in Kiev.

A little more than a third of the financing gap relates to drone purchases for the first three months of 2027. Zelensky called on the European Commission to transfer the next payments more quickly from a loan of 90 billion euros made available in April.

British companies will be allowed to use data from Ukrainian battlefields to develop new AI models for drone swarms. An agreement between Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will allow access to a database of images and videos from unmanned aerial systems, the British government says. The database therefore contains more than six million recorded objects such as tanks, artillery and air defense systems.

Russia condemns the EU sanctions against a former manager of the Russia Today (RT) television channel as illegal and a violation of press freedom. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov speaks to journalists about the “persecution of media representatives”. The EU states accuse the former head of the French RT branch, Xenia Fedorova, of spreading pro-Russian narratives about the Ukraine war and are imposing sanctions on her.

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, talks to restore shipping traffic in the Black Sea are in full swing. India, Turkey and Egypt are also involved, Zelensky told journalists. He held separate discussions with the heads of state and government of these states and other countries in the Middle East.

The steel company ArcelorMittal has recorded a write-off of around one billion dollars due to the destruction caused by Russian missile attacks on its factory in Ukraine. The impairment loss primarily reflects damage to property, facilities and equipment, the company said on Friday. The company told the government in Kiev that operations at the plant in Kryvyi Rih in central Ukraine could not be safely resumed.

According to authorities, at least one person was killed and numerous others injured in Ukrainian drone attacks on several Russian regions. In the Rostov region, an attack damaged the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery, which had to temporarily suspend operations, according to Governor Yuri Slyusar. According to Governor Alexei Russkich, eight people were injured in the Ulyanovsk region. A civilian was killed when a drone hit a truck in Belgorod.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb has asked US entrepreneur Elon Musk to expand Starlink satellite internet for Ukraine. This should enable Ukraine to attack Russian missile launchers on Russian territory. “That's why (...) I ask Elon Musk to give Ukrainians the opportunity to use Starlink in areas where there are ballistic missile launch pads,” Stubb told Reuters on Thursday.

In response to a wave of suspected acts of sabotage, NATO is increasing the exchange of intelligence information. The alliance must remain "calm and confident" in the face of the threat from Moscow, NATO's supreme commander in Europe, US General Alexus Grynkewich, told the Reuters news agency. Grynkewich describes recent incidents such as an attempted drone attack on Leipzig/Halle Airport as worrying.

The Romanian Ministry of Defense has reported the intrusion of a drone into its airspace. The flying object stayed over Romanian territory for around four minutes on Thursday and then crashed near a town in the north of the country.