Ukraine War News Today - Top Stories and Breaking Updates from Kyiv Post

Zelensky and other European leaders, along with senior officials, called for unity – with air defenses, the Baltic Sea, and Russia’s destabilization of its neighbors high on the agenda.

The Warsaw Security Forum, an invitation-only meeting of heads of politicians, analysts and senior officials, is being held for the 12th time on Monday and Tuesday. At the end of day one, what do we know?

President Volodymyr Zelensky gave a wide-ranging speech about the threat posed by Russia, which has been increasingly discussed in European capitals since the incursion of 19 Russian drones deep into Polish airspace in the early hours of Sept. 10. 

The US State Department’s annual Trafficking in Persons report condemns Moscow for exploiting migrants, North Korean workers, and Syrian recruits to fuel the war while abducting Ukrainian minors.

WASHINGTON DC – Russia has been identified by the US State Department for a “government policy or pattern of trafficking” of Ukrainian citizens, a damning picture laid out in the newly released 2025 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report.

The report, a global scorecard on modern slavery, excoriated Moscow’s actions during the war in Ukraine, leading to Russia’s continued designation as a Tier 3 country – the lowest rank, reserved for governments not making significant efforts to eliminate trafficking.

Despite Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine, US tariffs, and Chinese steel overcapacity, Interpipe remains profitable and aims to target markets in South America and Canada.

Ukraine’s largest pipe and rail wheel company Interpipe plans to remain profitable in 2025, marking the fourth consecutive year of profits during the Russia’s ongoing full-scale war, newly appointed CEO Luca Zanotti told Forbes Ukraine.

Interpipe, located in heavily shelled Nikopol, is owned by Ukraine’s fourth-richest businessman Viktor Pinchuk, as per Forbes Ukraine’s 2022 list of the 20 richest Ukrainians. The company earned $737.8 million from 2022 to 2024, with revenue hitting $1 billion in 2024. Roughly three quarters of its sales are to foreign markets.

Ukrenergo’s supervisory board dismissed its CEO, also condemning the Ministry of Energy’s decision to require they seek its approval for all press releases and call board members to Kyiv in person.

Ukraine’s state-owned power grid operator Ukrenergo has removed Vitaliy Zaychenko as chairman of its management board and reinstated Oleksii Brecht, the Supervisory Board said in a statement leaked by Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak on Sept. 27. 

The move follows a Sept. 16 ruling by the National Securities and Stock Market Commission that there had been procedural violations in recent board appointments, and reflects what the board called a loss of confidence in Zaychenko after weeks of escalating corporate conflict.

The FSB said on Monday that it had arrested a Russian woman for passing information to Ukrainian intelligence which was later used to plot missile attacks against Black Sea Fleet ships.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced on Monday that it had arrested an unnamed 45-year-old female head chef working in a restaurant in the Crimean city of Sevastopol. 

The woman, who stands accused of spying for Ukraine’s main intelligence directorate (HUR) for the past two years, has been remanded in custody, as per Meduza.

Economist Yuriy Gorodnichenko highlights how the Kremlin’s economic choices prioritize war over citizens’ well-being: an unsustainable path that no propaganda can cover.

Poland’s foreign minister also said that he had asked Beijing to help halt Belarusian attempts to destabilize the Polish border.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said on Monday that China is the only country that can force Russia to end its war in Ukraine.

Sikorski commented on China’s potential role as a peacemaker at the Warsaw Security Forum on Sept. 29, as per Ukrinform.

Stoltenberg, NATO chief from 2014 to 2024, also revealed how he had pushed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to consider ceding land to Russia in a bid to end the war in his new memoir.

From stroking US President Donald Trump’s ego to a “Finnish solution” for peace in Ukraine, former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg opens up about his decade as head of the alliance in a new memoir.

In “On My Watch” launched Monday in Norway, Stoltenberg revealed behind-the-scenes details of a 2018 NATO summit when Trump, during his first term, threatened to walk out due to a number of European countries’ failures to meet NATO’s two percent defense budget target.

In just 33 days in early 2022, Russian forces occupying Ukraine’s Bucha, tortured, raped, and killed civilians in their hundreds – with 500 bodies recovered while dozens more are still missing.

Less than a week after Russia began its 2022 full-scale invasion, Russian armored forces entered Bucha, a small town 24 kilometers (15 miles) northwest of the Ukrainian capital. Just 33 days later, the last of the occupying troops were forced out of the town.

Ukrainian forces, many from its Territorial Defense Forces, who liberated the town were met by scenes of horror – bodies of men, women and children, many who had been tortured or mutilated, lay in the streets, basements, and wrecked houses. In the days that followed, mass graves, torture chambers, and execution sites bore witness to the horrors that Moscow’s forces had inflicted on Ukraine’s civilians.

A Ukrainian deputy defense minister confirmed to the BBC’s Ukrainian edition that the country is set to receive the Swedish Gripen aircraft without disclosing the details.

Ukraine will receive Gripen fighter jets from Sweden, the Ministry of Defense confirmed on Monday.

During an interview with the BBC’s Ukrainian edition, First Deputy Defense Minister Lt. Gen. Ivan Havrylyuk confirmed that the Gripen is among the jets Kyiv will receive when asked by a reporter.

The list of Ukrainian media now banned by Budapest includes Ukrainska Pravda, New Voice of Ukraine, TSN, and Hromadske, among others.

Hungary has banned a list of 12 Ukrainian media outlets, calling it a reciprocal move in response to Kyiv’s earlier decisions to ban outlets due to Russian interference.

Kyiv has recently banned multiple pro-government Hungarian websites, including Origo and Demokrata, for disseminating Russian propaganda.

Putin signed a decree for a record autumn conscription, drafting 135,000 Russians – the largest fall intake since 2016. Moscow denies conscripts will be sent to fight in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a decree for a record autumn conscription campaign, set to run from Oct. 1 until the end of the year.

According to the official legal acts website, 135,000 people are slated to be drafted into the Russian army, the largest autumn intake since 2016, when 152,000 were called up.

A traditionally “sore” and tricky topic for law enforcement has received new momentum: usually, fatal road accidents used to go practically unpunished due to legislative loopholes and corruption.

The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine conducted an audit of cases involving severe road accidents (resulting in death or serious injury of a participant) and announced 178 suspicions.

This was reported on Facebook by Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko.

History should not forget nor forgive genocidal atrocities regardless of what flags they were committed under.

The 84th anniversary of Babyn Yar, one of the most heinous crimes against humanity, perpetrated by the Nazis in Kyiv in September 1941, is being officially commemorated during these days.

It is one of those atrocities that has become a symbol of evil and barbarity, and a reminder of what humankind must guard against. An event that cannot be forgotten.

Kenyan police arrested Russian diplomat Mikhail Lyapin and a local aide believed to have been recruiting men as mercenaries to fight for Moscow in Ukraine.

Kenyan authorities have detained a Russian embassy employee accused of recruiting local men as mercenaries for Moscow’s war in Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian project “I Want to Live” [Хочу жить], a Kyiv-backed initiative facilitating the surrender of Russian and Belarusian troops.

The group said that police in Nairobi arrested Mikhail Lyapin, a Russian working under diplomatic cover, who allegedly played a key role in persuading Kenyan nationals to travel abroad with promises of lucrative jobs. Once in Russia, recruits were reportedly pressured into signing contracts with the Russian military and deployed to the front lines in Ukraine.

Vice President Vance and Ukraine special envoy Keith Kellogg broadly hinted the US might green-light the attack. Kyiv also used its own missiles in a parallel strike.

Long-range missiles closely matching the attack profile of the US-made HIMARS rocket artillery system struck and damaged a power-generating station deep inside Russia’s Belgorod region on Sunday, in a strike Moscow officials blamed on the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).

Vyacheslav Gladkov, Belgorod region governor, in a Sunday evening statement, said “enemy missiles” struck a major power station in the region, causing widespread blackouts and forcing hospitals and police stations to operate on emergency generators. Delivery of water to residents was limited because power outages had shut off city water mains, and local residents should be patient as authorities worked to turn lights back on, he said.

Zelensky requests US Tomahawks to pressure Putin, while the Kremlin claims long-range missiles won’t alter the front lines – which entirely misses the purpose of strategic cruise missiles.

The transfer of US long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine will not affect the situation on the front, Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov stated.

“There is no panacea that can currently change the situation on the frontlines for the Kyiv regime. There is no magic weapon, be it Tomahawks or missiles – they cannot change the dynamics,” he said.

A new shahed launch site at Crimea’s Kacha airfield on the Black Sea coast, threatens Odesa, Kherson, or Mykolaiv with very short flight times, giving civilians a highly reduced reaction window.

Russia used the Kacha airfield on the western coast of occupied Crimea to launch Shahed attack drones for the first time during its Sept. 28 missile and drone attack, the monitoring channel eRadar on Telegram reported.

Kacha is the 12th confirmed launch site for Shaheds. Since it sits on the Black Sea coast, drones from there can reach Odesa, Kherson, or Mykolaiv much faster than from other launch sites, significantly shortening flight time to southern Ukraine.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Berlin sent three Patriot systems to Ukraine, with plans for two more by the end of 2025 with help from Norway.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Monday that Berlin plans to send two more Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine by the end of 2025 with help from Norway.

Pistorius, speaking at a panel discussion at the two-day Warsaw Security Forum that started on Monday, Sept. 29, said Berlin has delivered three Patriot systems to Ukraine while referencing Moscow’s latest aerial assault on Ukraine over the weekend.

Kyiv alleged the reconnaissance drones had been spotted on Friday morning, crossing the Ukrainian border twice from Hungary into the western Transcarpathia region.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Monday downplayed his country’s alleged violation of Ukrainian airspace with drones, saying “no-one” would attack the war-torn nation from Hungary’s direction.

Orban is Ukraine’s fiercest critic in the European Union, refusing to send military aid to the country to fight off Russia’s invasion.

Russia’s Medvedev mocks “frigid old Europe,” claims Russia came only as a “liberator,” yet warns war with EU is still possible.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and one of the Kremlin’s most outspoken hardliners, said Monday, Sept. 29, that Moscow has no interest in a war with Europe, but it remains possible.

In a Telegram post, Medvedev ridiculed repeated warnings in Western capitals that Russia could launch a war against NATO or EU countries within the next five years.

The former department head has been accused of taking a bribe from a contractor for personal hygiene products, with the contract ultimately not fulfilled.

Russia has arrested Col. Aleksandr Busygin, the former head of the clothing department at the Russian National Guard (Rosgvardiya), for allegedly taking a bribe while overseeing a state contract.

Busygin reportedly took a 6 million ruble ($72,245) bribe from JSC Dzerzhinsky Sewing Factory “Rus” to look the other way on a state contract for personal hygiene products that was never fulfilled.

NATO’s Military Committee wrapped up its meeting in Latvia on Saturday. The importance of this meeting is explained by Stefan Korshak, Senior Defense Correspondent for the Kyiv Post.

Real “bang for the buck”: Ukraine’s drone pilots destroyed a Russian Mi-8 military helicopter valued at over $10M using a small $500 FPV drone.

Ukrainian drone pilots have destroyed a Russian helicopter using an FPV drone, according to the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces, Robert “Madyar” Brovdi.

“The Mi-28 helicopter was destroyed by pilots of the 59th Brigade of the Unmanned Systems Forces with an FPV drone,” Brovdi initially wrote on Telegram, releasing video of the strike.

4 killed, 40+ hurt in Russia’s latest strikes. With winter close, Moscow may intensify attacks on Ukraine’s power grid. Bohdan Nahaylo, Kyiv Post Editor-in-Chief, unpacks what this means for Ukraine.

Zelensky warns that the Kremlin has converted tankers into UAV carriers, and command and conrol hubs it uses to attack targets in the West; again he calls for harsher sanctions on Russian Energy.

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday accused Russia of using oil tankers to launch and control drones targeting European countries, citing intelligence reports as he called for tougher sanctions against Moscow’s energy trade.

In his nightly video address, Zelensky said Moscow’s reliance on its vast tanker fleet poses not only an economic but also a security threat beyond Ukraine.

Mysterious drone sightings across Denmark since September 22 have prompted the closure of several airports, with Denmark hinting at possible Russian involvement.

Denmark will ban all civilian drone flights across the country over the coming days to ensure security as Copenhagen hosts an EU summit gathering heads of government, the transport ministry said Sunday.

Mysterious drone sightings across Denmark since September 22 have prompted the closure of several airports, with Denmark hinting at possible Russian involvement, though Moscow denies the charge.

Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman Paweł Wroński confirmed that the building had been hit and stressed that no one had been injured.

A missile fragment damaged the consular section of Poland’s embassy in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, during a major Russian air attack on Sunday.

Russia launched a 12-hour-long attack on Kyiv overnight, launching hundreds of drones and missiles.

Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed its forces shot down 230 drones, six guided bombs, and several rockets fired from US-supplied HIMARS and Czech-made Vampire systems over the past day.

Ukraine confirmed it struck a major defense plant in Russia’s Bryansk region on Sept. 29, using long-range Neptune cruise missiles in one of its boldest cross-border operations to date.

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, four missiles were launched from a distance of about 240 kilometers at the Karachevsky Elektrodetal plant, a facility producing components for military and aerospace industries.

Asked about his views on the war Ukraine during his recent visit to Britain, President Trump once again suggested that it does not directly affect the US.

During last week’s visit to Britain, US President Donald Trump was asked about his thoughts on Ukraine. He repeated the assertion that Ukraine does not affect the US.

“But, again, it doesn’t affect the United States… it doesn’t so much affect you [the UK]. Of course, you are a lot closer to the scene than we are. We have a whole ocean separating us.”

Latest from the Institute for the Study of War.

Key Takeaways from the ISW:

• US Vice President JD Vance criticized Russia’s rejection of American invitations to engage in bilateral or trilateral negotiations as Kremlin officials continue to demonstrate their lack of interest in good-faith negotiations with Ukraine.
• Russian forces conducted the third largest combined missile and drone strike against Ukraine of the war to date on the night of September 27 to 28 with 643 total projectiles.
• European officials continue to report unidentified drones operating within NATO airspace.
• Kremlin-linked Moldovan politicians called for protests in Moldova following the September 28 parliamentary election.
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov emphasized that Russia will use its upcoming United Nations Security Council (UNSC) presidency to “review” the 1995 Dayton Accords in a likely effort to destabilize the Balkans and divide and distract Europe.
• Russian forces recently advanced near Lyman and Novopavlivka.

Most Czech voters think online disinformation will have some impact on this weekend’s result, but only a quarter believe it will be enough to affect which parties form the next government.

During his shambolic visit to the UN last week, President Trump unexpectedly declared that Ukraine was in a position to “fight and win” all its territory back from Russia.

If this amounted to a welcome boost to Ukrainian morale, the main thrust of his message was that while the US would continue to supply weapons, Europe would have to step up its efforts.

US Vice President JD Vance says President Trump will decide on the transfer of the 2,500km cruise missiles as a Republican lawmaker urges the administration to arm Kyiv for deep strikes into Russia.

WASHINGTON DC – The United States is actively considering a request to facilitate the transfer of long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine. This move that would represent a significant escalation in Western military aid and comes as Russia unleashed a deadly, massive air assault on Kyiv and other cities.

Vice President JD Vance confirmed on Sunday that the administration is reviewing the request, which originated from President Volodymyr Zelensky during a recent meeting with President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Pro-western party retains majority in pivotal election, as analyst warns the nation is a proving ground for Moscow’s “multimillion-dollar” toolkit of coercion against the EU.

WASHINGTON DC – The pro-European faction in Moldova appears to have secured a majority in the country’s parliamentary election on Sunday, a critical victory that keeps the small former Soviet republic on its Westward trajectory toward the European Union.

However, the hard-fought win comes amid unprecedented – and potentially exportable – tactics of destabilization orchestrated by Moscow, an emerging threat that experts warn the West must immediately heed.