On August 5, 2025, the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeal put a final end to the conflict surrounding the Markhaliv Forest, canceling the order of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration No. 275 of March 14, 2024. The document provided for the seizure of forest lands and their transfer for the creation of the National Military Memorial Cemetery.
This is the fourth decision in favor of forest defenders. The plaintiff in the case was the public organization "Markhalivka. Support" with the participation of the Kyiv Ecological and Cultural Center. The court agreed with the arguments that the change in the purpose of the state forest fund was illegal. Accordingly, the land is being returned to the previous user - the Boyar Forest Research Station.
In fact, all the by-laws of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs related to the cemetery project in this location have been declared illegal or have lost their validity. However, despite this, representatives of the military cemetery management and the workers they hired, including loggers, are still in the Markhaliv Forest. According to the activists, this is no longer their territory, and they should stop all activities.
This court decision is an important precedent in the fight for the preservation of green areas and compliance with legal norms in matters of state land management. Now the responsibility passes to the new government of Yulia Svyrydenko. A clear response is expected from this team: to stop funding the illegal project, which has already gained toxicity, and to instruct the Ministry of Veterans Affairs to find another, legal and socially acceptable site for the burial of heroes.
