Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukrainian officials will travel to Washington next week for talks on approving the use of American weapons against Russian territory, and that Ukraine will begin exporting its own drones this year, with an offer already received from an African country. Zelensky also privately asked U.S. President Donald Trump for Tomahawk cruise missiles during a UN sidelines meeting, according to The Telegraph. These developments occurred between 7:06 PM and 7:36 PM UTC on September 26th, 2025. In a significant development for Ukraine's defense capabilities, President Zelensky announced that Ukraine will begin exporting its own drones this year, with an offer already received from an African country. Concurrently, Ukrainian officials are slated to travel to Washington next week for discussions regarding the approval of using American weapons against Russian territory, as reported by WSJ. Zelensky also indicated that if Russia causes blackouts in Ukraine, Ukraine will attack Russian energy infrastructure, emphasizing the need for long-range weapons from the U.S. Further bolstering Ukraine's defense, the Air Force is creating a new type of troops focused on unmanned air defense systems, according to Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. In other related news, Denmark has closed Aalborg airport again due to detected drones in its airspace, and the Lithuanian Parliament has authorized its army to more quickly and easily shoot down aerial targets violating its airspace, as reported by LRT. The U.S. has approved the sale of 400 AIM-120D-3 missiles to Germany for $1.23 billion, and Germany will assist Ukraine in developing weapons to destroy UAV factories in Russia. Amidst escalating tensions, "BAVOVNA" (explosions) were reported at the Afipsky Oil Refinery in Smolensk, Russia, where 18 cars with gasoline derailed and a fire occurred. Explosions were also reported in Rostov and Crimea. The Special Operations Forces reportedly destroyed Iskanders of the Russian 448th Missile Brigade, according to the General Staff. Additionally, a track was blown up near the village of Plyussy, on the St. Petersburg - Pskov route, and a Russian soldiers base was destroyed in Belaya Berezka, Bryansk region. The husband of Russian propagandist Simonyan, Tigran, has died. Earlier on September 26th, Ukrainian President Zelensky warned of a response to provocations on the Hungarian border after reconnaissance drones were detected entering Ukrainian airspace twice from Hungary. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the detection of a "sorcere-KM" type drone. Separately, reports suggested that U.S. President Donald Trump is open to lifting restrictions on the use of American-made long-range weapons inside Russia, following a meeting with President Zelensky earlier this week, according to The Wall Street Journal. Ukraine also reported that 17 children and adolescents were rescued from temporarily occupied territories.
