Rift over school year start: Lviv mayor bemoans new goverment guidelines

Source: Andryi Sadovyi/Telegram

The latest government decree will make schoolchildren in Lviv start their school 2 weeks later then it was earlier planned, said the city mayor on Wednesday.  The local authorities had initially planned to open schools on August 19 but the goverment said it would be September 2.

The decree clearly dampened the Lviv mayor mood. Andriy Sadovyi wrote,

“What do I think about this? Common sense has lost. Democracy and decentralization have lost too. But it seems no one cares. Those who make decisions bear the responsibility. I doubt it, but I hope the Cabinet has information about what the winter will be like and that schooling will proceed without emergencies.”

Lviv is preparing for potential extended power outages this winter, which had beep a primal reason the city wanted to shift the start of school year to August 19.

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.

Rinat Akhmetov’s Metinvest Group has completed the construction of an upgraded underground NATO Role 2 hospital in one of the hottest sectors of the frontline. This is the second stabilization point established under the Steel Front initiative in cooperation with the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The new facility, funded by Metinvest with an investment of UAH 21 million, is more secure than the first one thanks to its deeper location underground (over 6 meters) and additional fortifications.

Five armored vehicles “Kozak” have received a new mission – thanks to the support of Metinvest, they have been upgraded to full-fledged command and staff vehicles. These upgraded vehicles are now operating on the front line.