The European Union released €6.6 billion in military aid for Ukraine on September 25 as President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Kyiv faces a $27 billion budget gap for weapons and ArcelorMittal announced the shutdown of Ukraine's largest steel plant after repeated Russian strikes [1][17][19]. The announcements came as Russian drone barrages killed at least seven people in Kyiv and Ukrainian forces launched nearly 600 drones against Russian energy and industrial facilities [8][6].

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced the €6.6 billion release from the European Peace Facility — including €4.7 billion in reimbursements to member states, €900 million for the EU Military Assistance Mission, and €1 billion for joint procurement — saying Moscow's hybrid attacks aim to intimidate Europe into scaling back support but that "Europe is doing the opposite" [1][17]. Zelensky told Politico that Ukraine must secure $27 billion within two months, with roughly a third needed for drones to be ordered in October and November, or the army will face serious weapons shortages in January and February [10]. He is pressing the European Commission to release the second tranche of a €90 billion loan sooner, while a Commission spokesperson said timely implementation of reforms is crucial for further disbursements [10][43].

Russian strikes on Kyiv on September 25 killed at least seven people, including a 14-year-old boy identified as an Israeli citizen, and injured 59, according to Ukrainian officials and Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko, with the Kyiv City Military Administration having earlier reported five killed and 39 injured as the toll rose through the day [8][19][28]. UN human rights monitors recorded at least 200 civilians killed and 1,234 injured in Ukraine between September 1 and 24, including seven farm workers killed at a vegetable sorting facility in the Kharkiv region [14]. Zelensky said Russia has expanded attacks to data centers and internet providers, with a strike on a Kyiv business center damaging a Datagroup facility and disrupting service for 100,000 households [1][26]. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the targeted infrastructure "critical civilian" rather than military [1]. Russia's Defence Ministry stated its forces struck military-industrial facilities, logistics centers, and vessels used by the Ukrainian military, including a drone assembly plant in Boryspil and logistics centers in Odesa [25][1]. President Vladimir Putin said Ukraine "must feel our retaliatory strikes" and that decisions will be based on Russian interests [1][19].

Ukraine's General Staff confirmed strikes on two Russian oil refineries and three missile-production facilities, including the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez refinery [8]. Zelensky said the goal is to cut Russia's ability to finance the war [21]. Russian regional governors reported a death in Perm, injuries in Ulyanovsk and Voronezh, and damage to the Novoshakhtinsk refinery in Rostov [6][9]. An Oxford Institute for Energy Studies analysis found that 22 Russian refineries have been hit in 2026, pushing throughput to a 21-year low, and Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin admitted "significant operational risks" from drone attacks on refineries and tank farms [31]. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak attributed refinery outages to unscheduled maintenance [31]. A Carnegie Endowment analysis, drawing on historical air-campaign research and independent Russian sociology, argued that bombing populations tends to rally them behind their leaders, and that residents of Russia's border regions showed increased loyalty or detachment rather than turning against authorities after Ukrainian strikes [35].

ArcelorMittal announced it is shutting production at the Kryvyi Rih steel plant — Ukraine's largest — after four Russian missile strikes in five weeks killed five workers and made safe operations impossible [19][30]. CEO Mauro Longobardo said the company concluded "with deep regret" that it can no longer safely operate the plant, which employs about 12,500 people and accounts for 23% of national steel output [19][32]. Metinvest Chief Operating Officer Oleksandr Myronenko said metallurgy that once contributed up to 7% of Ukraine's GDP has fallen to near zero [33]. Steel-sector leaders are calling for EU tariff relief, CBAM exemptions, and a recovery fund, with Ukrmetallurgprom president Oleksandr Kalenkov warning that without support, production may halt until the war ends [29].

European governments and intelligence services described a pattern of Russian hybrid activity on NATO territory. Polish prosecutors opened an arson investigation into a fire at a Starlink ground station, suspecting Russian special services involvement [1][26]. Danish intelligence warned of a "low but growing" risk of a limited Russian military attack on a NATO country in the coming months [27]. European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said EU airspace has been violated and hybrid attacks are occurring, following a Spanish newspaper report that the CIA warned Spain, France, and Italy about possible Russian drone attacks [3]. Sweden and Finland conducted their first joint interception of Russian military aircraft over the Gulf of Finland [12].

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry stated that Russia has used 8,060 Iranian-made Shahed drones since the full-scale invasion [37]. White House National Security Council coordinator John Kirby detailed Iran-to-Russia drone transfers and a planned production factory inside Russia [36]. Iranian officials rejected the claims, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani calling allegations of ballistic missile sales to Russia "fundamentally false" [37]. In a separate dispute, Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi warned European states that hosted US military operations against Iran that their "participation will not go unanswered" [11].

At the UN General Assembly, a joint statement from over 50 countries plus the EU demanded a ceasefire, though the United States did not sign [21]. Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said "diplomacy is the only option" and proposed mediation, which Zelensky accepted [21][42]. China's UN ambassador Fu Cong called for an early ceasefire and peace talks [38]. India's envoy Parvathaneni Harish cited the conflict's indirect effects on the Global South, especially fuel prices [39]. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said both sides expressed interest in a limited ceasefire concerning grain and energy [21]. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov rejected any pause in military operations during negotiations, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia seeks a lasting peace, not a temporary ceasefire [21][23]. Trump told Putin to settle the war and brandished new tariff powers under what he called the "Graham law" [21].

A Turkish analysis argued that planned US troop withdrawals of 25,000 to 40,000 from Europe reflect a strategic rebalancing toward China, with analyst Dr. Hazar Vural stating European states lack the resources to fill the gap quickly [5].