Kyiv hosts national LGBTQI+ conference
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On December 5-6, Ukraine’s capital hosted the 17th National LGBTQI+ Conference that brought together over 150 activists, volunteers, and experts from across Ukraine to discuss pressing issues faced by the LGBTQI+ community.
The event marked a milestone in the growth and strengthening of the LGBTQI+ movement in Ukraine. Among the distinguished attendees were Martin Harris, the UK Ambassador to Ukraine, and Eamonn Murphy, the UNAIDS Regional Director for Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Asia-Pacific Region. The UK envoy spoke about the importance of human rights and international solidarity.
The conference addressed a broad range of topics, from the impact of the ongoing war on the community to innovative approaches to healthcare and mental well-being.
Participants explored ways to ensure equality as Ukraine advances toward European integration. They also discussed advocacy efforts for legislative initiatives such as Bill 9103 on civil partnerships and Bill 5488 on hate crimes. The discussions highlighted the importance of objective media coverage of LGBTQI+ issues, the protection of activists, and access to medical and psychological care during wartime.
The conference concluded with plans to develop a 2025 Roadmap for the LGBTQI+ community, outlining key challenges and priorities for the upcoming year.
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.