UNWLA at the Ukraine Action Summit, Fall 2026

UNWLA members joined more than 650 advocates at the ninth Ukraine Action Summit, and saw their work pay off in real time.

The Ukrainian National Women’s League of America (UNWLA) continued its 100-year tradition of civic advocacy at the ninth Ukraine Action Summit, held September 12–16, 2026, in Washington, DC. More than 650 advocates from all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia took part, including over 30 UNWLA members. Their visit to Capitol Hill coincided with a decisive moment: the House votes that sent the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 toward becoming law.

UNWLA’s presence went beyond attendance. Nine of the more than 30 UNWLA members who registered served as state delegation leaders or held leadership roles within the American Coalition for Ukraine, the organization behind the Summit. Their involvement shows how much UNWLA members contribute to organized Ukrainian-American advocacy nationwide.

The Summit opened with a two-day weekend conference featuring expert panels and an Expo where organizations showcased their work for Ukraine. Panel discussions gave attendees a deeper look at the challenges facing Ukraine and the essential context for the advocacy days ahead. Between sessions, the conference also offered valuable time for networking with partners from across the Ukrainian-American community.

At the Expo, the UNWLA table drew steady traffic all weekend, thanks to a dedicated team: VP-Membership Maria (Marusia) Flynn, Communications Director Anna Bereznyak, Oksana Bats, Tamara Syby, and the member volunteers who staffed it. More than 20 women filled out cards to join UNWLA.

Unexpected and fun attendee

Conference Highlight: Natalie Pawlenko moderated a discussion with Ukraine’s Ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, titled “Human Rights in Times of War: Solving the Impossible.”

<Recording is coming soon>

Summit Side Event Highlight: At a special media event organized by the Remembrance Society on the sidelines of the Summit, UNWLA President Natalie Pawlenko, UNWLA Officer-at-Large and ACU President Marianna Tretiak, joined Prof. Serhii Plokhii, Maj. Gen. Dwayne Miller, and Ambassador Oksana Markarova,  for the discussion of “A Millennium of Ukrainian Nationhood: Opposing Putin’s Big Lie,”.

Prof. Serhii Plokhii summarized it:

“An artificial nation does not spend generations building institutions to remember itself.”

In the photo: Marianna Tretiak (ACU), Don Ritter (The Remembrance Society), Maj. Gen. Miller, Ambassador Oksana Markarova, Kristina Olney Mallek (The Remembrance Society), Natalie Pawlenko (UNWLA)

The UNWLA Member Reception has become one of the most anticipated traditions of the Summit. It was hosted on Monday evening by DC Branch 78 at the Colonnade in Washington, with special thanks to Marta Holder and Irena Chalupa for the warm welcome, the beautiful venue, and the delicious food.

The evening’s most moving moment came when UNWLA welcomed new honorary members. Four were Gold Star Mothers, American women whose sons gave their lives for Ukraine’s freedom. Others were Ukrainian women from Warriors Liberation (Voyatski Vyzvil), whose husbands and sons are Ukrainian soldiers held in russian captivity or missing in action. There were remembrances, embraces, and tears as UNWLA members surrounded their new “sisters” with love and gratitude.

The advocacy portion of the Summit began Monday with a full day of training on the policy pillars. These were the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, the Justice for Ukrainian Children Act, and defense and economic partnerships with Ukraine. Policy experts briefed advocates on the details of each bill, the arguments in support, and the objections they might hear. Advocates were also trained in how to conduct meetings with congressional offices.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, UNWLA members joined their state delegations for meetings across the House and Senate. Altogether, Summit delegates held 459 meetings out of a possible 535 congressional offices.

The timing was remarkable. Advocates were meeting with lawmakers while the House was deciding whether to bring the Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act to the floor. The Rules vote came on September 15. On the afternoon of September 16, advocates watched the House pass the bill 262–159. The Summit closed with tears of joy, and the bill was signed into law on Friday, September 18.

For UNWLA, passage marks a milestone, not the finish line. Members are committed to making sure the law is implemented as intended. That means Congress must exercise its oversight, russia and its enablers and financiers must face the law’s full provisions, and the President must not waive the sanctions. The goal remains to cut off russia’s ability to wage its war of aggression against Ukraine.

The Summit brought a second advance on the same day. On September 16, as advocates met with congressional offices, the Justice for Ukrainian Children Act (H.R. 10473) was introduced in the House, one of the three policy pillars delegates had been advocating for. The bipartisan bill, introduced by Representatives Don Bacon, James R. Walkinshaw, Greg Landsman, and Brian Fitzpatrick, would fund efforts to locate and return abducted children, mandate sanctions on those responsible, and counter Kremlin propaganda. For an organization that has advocated for Ukrainian children for a century, UNWLA will now push to move this bill forward.