German and Russian foreign ministers hold their first known talk since 2022 at the UN. Twenty minutes, a handshake and "nothing new."

Briefing note: on Sept. 26, on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held what is believed to be the first such meeting since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Associated Press reports via PBS NewsHour. The meeting came at Wadephul's request. The German news agency dpa reported it lasted roughly 20 minutes, in a room provided by the Russian side, and ended with a handshake. A German official said Wadephul urged Russia to abandon its "dangerous path of escalation" toward Germany, Europe and NATO, and said a better relationship would require a genuine willingness from Russia's leadership to end the war. Ties have soured since an attempted drone attack last month at Leipzig airport, which Germany blames on Russia. "He simply reiterated his official public position condemning Russia," Lavrov said. "You can judge for yourself whether that counts as dialogue or not." Then he took the rostrum, accused Germany of being Ukraine's main sponsor, and made clear Russia will veto any bid by Germany or Japan for a permanent Security Council seat. Meanwhile, Ukraine's president says Washington is pushing for three-way technical talks among U.S., Ukrainian and Russian delegations, and that Kyiv is waiting for the U.S. to propose a date. Assessment: twenty minutes and a handshake are not a thaw. But channels matter most when relations are worst. In October 1962, a back channel between Robert Kennedy and Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin helped end the Cuban missile crisis. Talking is not appeasement; it is how misreadings get corrected before they become accidents. The test now is modest and measurable: whether the technical talks get a date, and whether anyone arrives with the authority to agree to something.