The Russian Foreign Minister has held dozens of meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA including one with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. ©  Sputnik/Valery Sharifulin

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is addressing the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York regarding the Ukrainian conflict and a broad range of other issues.

Lavrov has held more than 35 meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA over the past three days, including one with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the talks, both agreed to maintain contact on a wide range of issues.

They also reaffirmed the importance of the “momentum” generated by the Alaska summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump in “normalizing bilateral relations,” the Foreign Ministry in Moscow relayed.

The Russian delegation’s visit comes on the heels of a sharp change in Trump’s rhetoric on the Ukraine conflict following his meeting with Vladimir Zelensky earlier this week. In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, the US president said he believes Kiev is “in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back,” with enough support from the EU and NATO.

For months before that, Trump and his administration had argued that Ukraine would need to relinquish some of its territorial claims in order to secure a US-brokered peace deal.

Unlike his predecessor, Joe Biden, Trump has resisted sending large amounts of direct US military aid to Kiev and has instead urged European NATO members to buy American weapons for Ukraine's forces.

Throughout the conflict, Moscow has stressed that it is open to a peaceful settlement, as long as it includes a Ukrainian commitment to neutrality, demilitarization, denazification, and acceptance of the new territorial realities.

27 September 2025

16:17 GMT

Lavrov emphasized the need to restore and protect the rights of the Russian-speaking population in Ukraine. Under these conditions, Moscow may agree to provide Kiev with security guarantees.

16:16 GMT

“The UN charter still serves as beacon of cooperation, and all members must adhere to its principles in practice,” Lavrov has said.

“Widespread gross violations of the principle of the sovereign equality of states are undermining faith in justice itself, leading to crises and conflicts. The root of the problem lies in the incessant attempts to divide the world into us and them, into democracy and autocracy, into a blooming garden and a jungle,” the minister continued.

©  UN Web TV

 

16:14 GMT

Russia supports removing Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism and lifting sanctions against it, Lavrov has said.

16:12 GMT

Lavrov stated that Russia condemned the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, but still considers West Jerusalem’s actions in Gaza unacceptable.

15:59 GMT

“Today marks the culmination of the Russian delegation’s work” during the 80th UN General Assembly, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said. 

©  Russian Foreign Ministry

 

15:58 GMT

Lavrov has held more than 35 meetings on the sidelines of the UNGA over the past three days, including one with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the talks, both agreed to maintain contact on a wide range of issues.