Key facts
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused the U.S. on Sept. 15, 2026, of prolonging the war in Ukraine by a year.
- Lavrov claimed the U.S. withdrew from alleged "Anchorage agreements" reached between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
- U.S. officials deny that such agreements existed.
- Lavrov stated that if the U.S. had not backed away from the agreements, the war would have ended a year ago.
- Russia demands Kyiv cede the Donbas region for a ceasefire.
- President Zelensky plans to discuss limited ceasefires with Trump during a potential meeting next week.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused the U.S. on September 15, 2026, of prolonging Moscow's war against Ukraine by a year. He claimed that Washington's withdrawal from alleged "Anchorage agreements" reached between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin prevented the war from ending.
Lavrov stated that if the Americans had not backed away from these purported agreements, and Europe had not "pulled" the U.S. away from them, "we would have been living without war for a year now." U.S. officials have repeatedly denied the existence of any such agreements from Trump's 2025 meeting with Putin in Alaska.
His comments come as U.S.-led efforts to broker a broader peace deal remain stalled due to Russia's territorial demands. The Kremlin has rejected a ceasefire unless Kyiv cedes the partially occupied Donbas region, a demand Kyiv has refused, instead calling for a ceasefire along the current front line and security guarantees.
President Volodymyr Zelensky plans to discuss potential limited ceasefires with Trump during a possible meeting next week on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, focusing on energy infrastructure and Black Sea strikes. Lavrov also indicated he plans to meet U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the assembly.
Envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff visited Moscow and Kyiv earlier this month in an attempt to revive peace talks. Their visit resulted in an agreement to resume trilateral negotiations between Ukraine, the U.S., and Russia. Lavrov stated that Moscow remains open to resuming these talks, asserting that previous negotiations were not interrupted by Russia's initiative.