Ukrainian foreign ministry condemns crackdown on protests in Tbilisi”
Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine
On Friday, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement condemning the use of force against peaceful protesters in Tbilisi and urged the Georgian authorities to respect citizens’ right to peaceful assembly.
The ministry’s statement attributed the political crisis in Georgia to numerous violations during the parliamentary elections held on October 26. Kyiv called for a thorough investigation into these violations and for those responsible to be held accountable.
The foreign ministry also expressed disappointment with the Georgian government’s decision to put a halt on its EU accession talks until 2028.
“This decision, alongside the violent suppression of peaceful protests, marks a troubling retreat from democratic processes in favor of Moscow’s agenda. It is no coincidence that Georgia’s leadership has already received public praise from the Kremlin for actions contrary to the European aspirations of its people,” the statement said.
The foreign ministry urged Tbilisi to honor the will of the majority of its people, who aspire to join a free and democratic Europe.
In 2025, the deadliest year yet for civilians, Ukraine’s three largest charitable foundations raised a record 105.9 billion hryvnias. It is more than the years 2022–2024 combined. According to the UN, humanitarian aid in Ukraine was delivered by more than 450 organisations, reaching five million people over the course of the year. Civic foundations hold licences to purchase lethal weapons, which is a function states have monopolised for centuries. These record sums were underwritten by international government grants, which means foreign states now channel billions directly through Ukrainian civic funds, bypassing inter-state channels. It is hard to imagine a stronger institutional trust in civil society.
During the GLOBSEC Defence Forum 2026 in Prague, representatives of “Steel Front”, an initiative by Rinat Akhmetov, discussed with NATO delegations, military officials, and representatives of the European defense industry the lessons learned from Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
After the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine witnessed an unprecedented wave of private support for the army. Citizens, big businesses, charitable foundations, and international philanthropists began financing the country’s defense alongside state assistance provided by international partners. Estimates of total private contributions range from tens to hundreds of billions of hryvnias. However, determining the exact amount remains difficult. In many cases, companies combine military aid, humanitarian programs, tax payments, social spending, and employee support in their reporting.
Rinat Akhmetov’s military initiative, “Steel Front”, has delivered a batch of drones worth UAH 214 million to the 1st “Azov” Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine. This shipment is part of the Metinvest Group’s ongoing support for the unit in 2025.
On October 6, the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court of Ukraine continued hearing case No. 990/80/25, in which the fifth President and leader of the party “European Solidarity”, Petro Poroshenko, seeks to have Presidential Decree No. 81/2025 from February 12, 2025 — enacting sanctions by the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) — declared illegal and annulled. The plaintiff claims the document was falsified and that the sanctions are a tool of political persecution of the opposition, contrary to international norms. Government representatives deny the allegations and insist their actions were lawful. Journalists of Bukvy were present at the hearing.