The fall Ukraine Action Summit, a large-scale five-day event that will last from October 25 to 29, has kicked off in Washington. The summit brought together over 700 participants – activists, experts, community leaders and representatives of organizations from all US states. The summit is organized by the American Coalition for Ukraine (ACU). The main goal of the meeting is to coordinate the actions of the Ukrainian diaspora, form advocacy priorities and hold direct meetings with congressmen and senators on Capitol Hill.
According to the ACU, this event is one of the largest in the American pro-Ukrainian movement:
“Almost 700 participants have been announced… Over five days, you will participate in meaningful panel discussions, meet like-minded people, see the exposition of organizations and bring your voice directly to Capitol Hill,” the official description of the summit says.
The program opened with a two-day conference and exhibition (Expo), dedicated to the key challenges of Ukraine - from security and sanctions against the Russian Federation to humanitarian initiatives and technological development. Today, October 26, an official reception will be held.
One of the central events is the press conference “Putin Will Not Stop His War Against Ukraine: Implications for the West”, organized by The Remembrance Society together with ACU. Among the speakers are William Browder, president of The Magnitsky Justice Foundation and a well-known fighter against corruption in Russia; David Sutter, journalist and author of books about the decline of the USSR; Kyle Parker, Chief of Staff of the US Helsinki Commission; Congressmen Roger Wicker, Joe Wilson, Brian Fitzpatrick and Marcy Kaptur; and Marianne Tretyak, Chair of the ACU Board of Trustees.
The conference will also feature a presentation by the War Crimes Investigations Unit of The Kyiv Independent, which will present evidence on the militarization of children in occupied territories and the persecution of Christians by Russia.
ACU Board of Trustees Chair Marianne Tretyak emphasized that “the Washington summit will bring together delegates to strengthen support for Ukraine in Congress. This will be the largest gathering of Ukrainian and American organizations working for the security, justice and restoration of Ukraine.”
She added that this is the first time the summit is hosting a major conference with eight panels.
In particular, among the advocacy priorities that delegates will bring to congressional offices are the use of frozen Russian assets for the defense and reconstruction of Ukraine (implementation of the REPO/REPO Implementation Act), strengthening sanctions, the return of illegally removed Ukrainian children, long-term security guarantees, and the development of economic partnerships. The bipartisan REPO Implementation Act (S.2918) is currently under consideration in the Senate, which provides for a mechanism for regularly directing income from Russian assets to the Ukraine Support Fund.
ACU emphasizes that the summit is held twice a year and has been steadily growing since the spring of 2025: more than 600 delegates from 49 states and Puerto Rico gathered in Washington then. The current, seventh gathering, according to the organizers, is one of the largest.
In addition, advocacy training is planned for October 27, and the delegation will spend the next two days meeting in the offices of congressmen and senators.
Organizers noted that only U.S. citizens and legal residents will be allowed to meet with lawmakers in person as “constituents.” In a number of districts, Congressional bodies have already reached their capacity limits.
Author: Andrii Hetman