#War

On the evening of August 28, Russia attacked warehouses in Bucha district of Kyiv region: a fire and detonation occurred, and the "Kyiv–Chop" highway is closed. PM Koretsky called the incident "criminal negligence."

Head of the Office of the President Budanov confirmed on the telethon that dialogue with Russia is limited to prisoner exchanges, and a major swap is planned for the near future. There is no talk of negotiations on ending the war.

On a broadcast of "Channel One," Deputy Speaker of the Russian State Duma Pyotr Tolstoy called for open strikes on Ukrainian cities, with residents warned in advance, in order to "demoralize" the population and force it to capitulate.

Zelensky claimed the SBU destroyed a Tu-95MS strategic bomber at the Engels airfield and an oil refinery in Yaroslavl, 1,000 km from the front. Some details, including photos of the damaged airframe, require verification.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry stated that Russia's real intentions to end the war are seen not in diplomatic statements but in actions: on 27 August there were 13 alerts over Kyiv, 872 minutes of danger and around 140 launched drones.

Following a nighttime raid, Russia made a second attempt within 24 hours to strike Kyiv and the region with attack drones. Air defense was active in the capital and its suburbs; no direct hits on the city's infrastructure were recorded.

Ukraine's Delta system consolidates drone, signals-intercept, and satellite data into a single platform and cuts the time from target detection to strike from 20 minutes to a few. According to the NYT, it was this system that helped halt the Russian offensive.

Former U.S. special envoy Keith Kellogg explained in an interview that Russia began striking Ukraine during his visits after he lost his status as a government official and became a private citizen.

Russian troops attacked Gazmerezhi facilities in the Chernihiv and Kharkiv regions on 26 August. An emergency crew en route to localize an accident came under fire: a fitter sustained shrapnel injuries and was hospitalized.

Mikhail Ilyashev, President of the National Fencing Federation of Ukraine, stated that the main challenge for the sport amid the war is keeping the number of children practicing fencing at pre-war levels. At the same time, he reported a 15 percent growth in children's league participants last season and financial difficulties that prevented sending all disciplines to the World Championship in Hong Kong.

Ukraine's Ministry of Education confirmed: due to strikes on printing houses and warehouses, more than 1.2 million textbooks worth 120–150 million hryvnia have been destroyed. By September 1, some schools will switch to electronic and PDF versions, and the new runs will be delivered by November 1, 2026.

By the 35th anniversary of Independence, Ukraine faces internal turbulence: protests following a government reshuffle, a NABU investigation around the deputy head of the Office of the President, and the slow advance of Russian troops at the front.

At an August 23 press conference, Zelensky rejected the idea of elections during the war, calling it a 'tsunami,' and responded to the call by former Defense Minister Fedorov. KIS poll: only 15% of Ukrainians support voting before the end of the fighting.

Sean Penn has become the executive producer of the documentary film "Black Sunflowers" about the coming of age of Ukrainian youth during the war. The world premiere of the film is scheduled for the 51st Toronto Film Festival.

Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine will respond 'fairly and with long-range strikes' to the mass night attack on Kyiv and the region, which, according to him, resulted in 15 deaths.

First Deputy Head of the President's Office Kyslytsia stated that Putin does not strive for negotiations, calculating that Ukraine will not survive the winter. Meanwhile, Kyiv continues the diplomatic track and awaits the visit of American negotiators.

Irina Mosulezna, an expert from Join UP! Ukraine, explained why the return of civil aviation to Ukraine will not repeat the Israeli scenario: the nature of threats and security infrastructure are fundamentally different.

The «Ranok» publishing house in Kharkiv will need three to five years to recover after a Russian strike that destroyed warehouses containing millions of textbooks. The company is launching an anti-crisis plan: reprinting 620,000 books, implementing cost-saving measures, and establishing new logistics.