Lavrov Tells UN Russia Will Continue War in Ukraine

Russia's Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, told reporters at the United Nations that Russia will continue its war in Ukraine, after a brief meeting with his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.¹

A short meeting, no shift

Lavrov and Wadephul met at the United Nations in what sources describe as the first meeting between Russian and German foreign ministers since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022, with one source dating the previous such meeting to January 2022. Accounts differ on the length of the encounter: one source says it lasted no more than 20 minutes, matched by another describing the same duration, while a third disputes this account.³⁴⁵⁸

Lavrov dismissed Wadephul's positions as containing nothing new, saying, "If you look at Berlin's daily public statements, I did not hear anything new." He also mocked the circumstances of the meeting, telling Wadephul, "You could have just called me and said, Read my statement."³⁸

Wadephul said Russia showed no willingness to negotiate constructively, stating, "We are doing that. Unfortunately, Russia is currently showing no willingness to take a constructive negotiating position." He separately said Russian hybrid attacks have reached a new level and called on Russia to abandon what he described as a path of escalation.³⁴⁸

Berlin's response

Chancellor Friedrich Merz, speaking at a press conference in Berlin, said Russia's own account of the meeting confirmed it was not seeking genuine negotiations: "Russia's subsequent assessment of this conversation has shown that Russia is obviously not interested in serious talks at all at this point in time." He added that Russia would suffer heavily if the war continued: "Russia will not win this war and would suffer massive damage the longer the conflict continues."²⁴

Merz said Germany would keep backing Kyiv, noting that Berlin is committed to supporting Ukraine over the long term and would keep doing so because Ukraine is part of Europe. He also identified air defense as currently Ukraine's biggest vulnerability heading into winter, remarking that this is presently its weakest area. He expressed hope that Ukraine could be readied for the coming winter, and warned that Russia would keep relentlessly bombing and destroying civilian infrastructure. Germany is reported to be holding consultations with European partners to expand support for Ukraine's air defenses before winter.³

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said Lavrov had ridiculed and undermined attempts at negotiation.⁴

Patriot missiles and Russian doctrine

Separately, Lavrov addressed Poland's proposal to jointly produce Patriot missiles with Ukraine at a secure site, pointing to Russia's military doctrine on the issue, which he noted President Vladimir Putin has referenced on multiple occasions. He recommended that observers closely examine the pertinent section of that key document. According to one source, Poland has provided Ukraine with about $5 billion in weapons packages since 2022 and organized the 50th tranche of military aid, and a scandal over the Patriot supply plan emerged in Poland in summer 2026.⁵⁶

Lavrov said Europe was waging war against Russia through its arms deliveries to Ukraine, telling reporters, "Open war has been declared against us. the government in Kyiv is being used as a front-line tool though everyone knows that this tool would be powerless without Western weapons behind it. He also said Belgium's General Staff had declared preparations for war with Russia and described Europe as the source of a recurring global threat, saying this would mark the third time in modern history that such a threat originated there. and that European powers are now doing all they can to make Ukraine the spark for it.⁶⁷

Other claims from Moscow

According to a Russian source, the meeting with Wadephul produced nothing substantive from the German side and came about at Germany's last-minute request, with Moscow suggesting Berlin wants to appear to be maintaining contact with Russia while also seeking to stay relevant to any Ukraine settlement. The same source reported that Russia-U.S. contacts on unspecified 'irritants' are expected soon, with timing under coordination, and that Russia has not received encouraging signals from the Trump administration on the return of Russian diplomatic property. The same source also quoted Lavrov predicting that changing global conditions will ultimately compel Washington to deal with major powers like Russia and China on more equal, multipolar terms.⁵

The same Russian source reported Lavrov describing Russian military action in Ukraine as the elimination of threats and destruction of infrastructure linked to what he called the 'Nazi Kiev regime.' Separately, a UN meeting drew calls from 51 countries for Russia to end its aggression, and Lavrov told that meeting Russia would not halt its war even during possible negotiations.³⁵

In a separate exchange reported from July, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev told Putin, "Whatever happens in Ukraine, we will never forget that Russia and Ukraine are our friends," and noted that Astana had worried about the Ukraine conflict since it first began.⁴