Trump Tells Zelensky a Ukraine Deal Is Coming as UNGA Diplomacy Intensifies

NEW YORK, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky sat down for roughly 40 minutes on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, emerging with optimistic language but no concrete framework, as Russia's strikes on Ukrainian cities continued unabated through the night.

It was their fifth face-to-face meeting since a stormy Oval Office encounter in February 2025 that came close to ending direct American engagement with Kyiv. The trajectory since then has shifted considerably. <cite index="23-4,23-5">Subsequent meetings have gone much better, with Trump moving from echoing Russian claims and calling Zelensky "a dictator without elections" to praising the Ukrainian president on several occasions later last year.</cite>

The stakes in New York were higher than at any previous meeting. <cite index="28-5">Behind Zelensky came a record drone assault on Moscow, Russia's retaliatory wave of strikes that killed two people in Zaporizhzhia, and a sanctions bill his American counterpart had just signed into law that the Kremlin is calling an act of escalation.</cite>

<cite index="27-12">Zelensky tied the diplomacy directly to that legislation, thanking Trump for signing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, which the White House said Trump signed on September 18.</cite>

In remarks to reporters before the private session, Trump was characteristically elliptical about terms. <cite index="20-5,20-9,20-10">Trump told reporters the two leaders were talking about figuring out a solution to end Russia's war in Ukraine, adding: "I think they're going to reach a deal, and I don't want to say what the deal will be. We talk about it a lot, including with President Putin, and I think something is going to happen."</cite> According to Reuters, Trump said that Putin is willing to meet to end the war.

<cite index="25-7,25-8">Zelensky thanked Trump for his ongoing support as well as Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who were in the room, for their work on negotiations. Zelensky said he believed there would be a solution of some kind reached before winter.</cite>

<cite index="21-4">After meeting Trump, Zelensky pledged to push for a moratorium on strikes on Ukraine's energy grid.</cite> That pledge arrived against a grim backdrop. <cite index="22-3">There has been no let-up in Russia's bombardment across Ukraine, with more attacks on the capital Kyiv as well as ballistic missile and drone strikes on railways, energy facilities, and residential homes.</cite>

<cite index="19-6,19-7">In addition to meeting Trump, Zelensky said around 20 other meetings with officials and organisations were planned, and he announced that a new deal concerning drones was ready to be signed.</cite>

The bilateral sat within a broader UNGA session that's proving unusually dense with geopolitical weight. <cite index="4-4,4-5">This year's high-level meetings come as the world grapples with wars in the Middle East and Europe, a global energy crisis, and heightened fears around artificial intelligence. To cap it off, Trump is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping for a highly anticipated state visit in Washington later this week.</cite> Xi is skipping the General Assembly hall entirely, a conspicuous absence that several European delegations privately described as a snub to the multilateral order.

The succession race for Guterres's job added a secondary layer of diplomatic intrigue to the week. <cite index="16-9,16-11,16-12,16-13">The Security Council held its third straw poll for the next secretary-general on September 18, and three informal votes have produced no consensus among eight candidates. The third round of secret, nonbinding voting left the contest unchanged, with Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica leading with nine "encourage" votes and five "discourage," followed by Guyana's Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett with eight "encourage" and six "discourage."</cite>

<cite index="16-14,16-15">Neither candidate has yet overcome the possibility of a veto by one of the five permanent Security Council members, and although the General Assembly will not formally decide the succession this week, the diplomatic activity in New York is likely to shape the eventual outcome.</cite> <cite index="10-13">No woman has ever held the position of secretary-general.</cite>

For now, though, it's the war in Ukraine that commands the hall. Guterres, addressing reporters ahead of what will be his final high-level week as secretary-general, did not hide the organisation's exhaustion. <cite index="2-7">UN diplomacy to halt wars and ease civilian suffering is largely paralysed, while a second year of cost cutting has weakened the organisation's capacity to respond.</cite> The Trump-Zelensky handshake may be the most consequential thing to happen inside any room in New York this week, which says something about the state of the institution hosting it.

Sources cited:
- Kyiv Independent (https://kyivindependent.com/zelensky-arrives-in-us-for-high-stakes-trump-meeting-un-general-assembly/)
- The Jerusalem Post / Reuters (https://www.jpost.com/international/internationalrussia-ukraine-war/article-909346)
- Newsweek (https://www.newsweek.com/trump-discusses-white-house-ballroom-during-zelensky-meeting-unga-12474706)
- Channel 4 News (https://www.channel4.com/news/zelenskyy-and-trump-meet-at-unga-as-strikes-continue-across-ukraine)
- RTE News (https://www.rte.ie/news/analysis-and-comment/2026/0922/1592552-trump-zelensky-meeting-preview/)
- Eastern Herald (https://easternherald.com/2026/09/21/zelensky-trump-new-york-unga-ukraine-russia-war/)
- NewsCord / multiple outlets (https://newscord.org/article/zelenskyy-agrees-with-trump-to-meet-in-new-york-during-un-general-assembly--Story_20260920_Friedensprozesshathc4d539bf6)
- CNBC (https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/23/unga-trump-iran-china-greenland-ukraine-russia-.html)
- Council on Foreign Relations (https://www.cfr.org/articles/what-to-watch-for-at-unga-2026)
- Eastern Herald (SG succession) (https://easternherald.com/2026/09/21/un-secretary-general-succession-grynspan-frontrunner/)
- SDG Knowledge Hub / IISD (https://sdg.iisd.org/news/eighth-candidate-joins-the-race-to-become-new-un-secretary-general/)
- International Crisis Group (https://www.crisisgroup.org/sco/global/updates-un-general-assembly-2026)