KYIV – October 14 was marked for the first time this year as the Day of the Defender of Ukraine – to honor the courage and heroism of the defenders of Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. The date coincides with the religious feast day of St. Mary the Protectress (Pokrova).
On the occasion of what last year was designated a national holiday, President Petro Poroshenko took part in a prayer service in St. Sophia Cathedral. Prayers were offered by representatives of various religious denominations of Ukraine: Metropolitan Epiphanius of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky and Bila Tserkva of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate; Bishop Joseph Milian of the Eparchy of Kyiv of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church; Metropolitan Onufriy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Moscow Patriarchate; Archbishop Petro Malchuk of the Kyiv-Zhytomyr Diocese of the Roman Catholic Church; Bishop Markos Hovhannisyan, primate of the Ukrainian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church; the mufti of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims in Ukraine, Tamim Akhmed; and the president of the Ukrainian Bible Society, Hryrohii Komendant.
A flag from the battle of Ilovaisk that was on display as part of the exhibit “Power of the Unbroken” on Kyiv’s St. Michael’s Square.
Government leaders and clergy prayed for the Ukrainian nation, fallen Ukrainian heroes and Ukrainian warriors who continue to defend the homeland.
Also on that day, President Poroshenko viewed the exhibition of military equipment “Power of the Unbroken,” which opened on St. Michael’s Square in Kyiv. The exhibition demonstrates achievements in military-defense sphere of the last one and half years, including military equipment that is already being used by Ukraine’s defenders.
“We’ve managed to create a modern, combat-capable, patriotic and efficient army in a bit more than a year. We forced military plants to work in three shifts without a weekend. We’ve eliminated corruption in military supply. Together with volunteers in the Ministry of Defense, we’ve dressed, fed and trained tens of thousands of troops. We’ve done it together, the entire Ukrainian nation: warriors, volunteers, workers and engineers, diplomats and government officials,” Mr. Poroshenko noted in opening the exhibition.
A special ceremony with military cadets on historic Khortytsia Island.
The exhibition also included military equipment provided for Ukraine by its partners and allies from abroad. The president expressed gratitude for their essential assistance. “We do not need foreign soldiers. Ukrainians have enough skills and willpower to defend their land from occupants. But we are grateful for defensive non-lethal weapons. But our main strength is in the fact that we are fighting for the truth and defending our native land. Thus, our power grows multiple times,” Mr. Poroshenko said.
The exhibition included the Ukrainian battle flag that was unfolded at the United Nations by Ukrainian activists in the course of the speech by Russian President Vladimir Putin at the 70th session of the U.N. General Assembly. The flag went through the battle at Ilovaisk; it was found in a completely burned truck. “This truck, together with Ukrainian warriors, was destroyed by Russian forces who guaranteed them safe exit from encirclement. The earth burned, metal melted. But the flag remained to become a symbol of unbroken Ukraine, which not only withstood, but also hardened in this dreadful war,” the president noted.
The opening ceremony of the exhibit was attended by ambassadors and military attachés of foreign diplomatic missions in Ukraine.
At another ceremony, the president of Ukraine presented state awards to the military for personal courage, professionalism and loyalty to the military oath demonstrated in the defense of the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In all, 142 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, National Guard, State Border Service, Security Service, State Guard Department, State Special Communication Service and State Emergency Service of Ukraine were recognized. Eleven soldiers were honored posthumously.
Military medics who had taken part in the rescue of anti-terrorist operation (ATO) participants and provided medical assistance to the wounded were awarded the honorary title “Honored Doctor of Ukraine” and “Honored Worker of Health of Ukraine.”
On the legendary Khortytsia Island in Zaporizhia, President Poroshenko took part in a special ceremony at which students of the Ivan Bohun Kyiv Lyceum and Zaporizhia Regional Lyceum took their oaths as part of their intensified military-technical training.
In his speech to the cadets, he emphasized the importance of historic ties among all generations of Ukrainians who struggled for the independence and freedom of the country and recalled the words of Bohdan Khmelnytsky: “We are a freedom-loving people, always willing to die for our freedom.”
Speaking of today’s defenders of Ukraine, Mr. Poroshenko noted that over 93,000 Ukrainian soldiers were direct participants in the war, almost 108,000 took part in the ATO, and 210,000 came to the army in six waves of mobilization – one-sixth of them volunteers.
At the same time, the president added that the current ceasefire “shouldn’t mislead anyone.”
He told the students: “You’ve just taken a solemn oath of allegiance to the homeland. I believe that you will become courageous officers and will honorably replace the present defenders of Ukraine. You will become an object of pride for your parents, relatives and every Ukrainian citizen. Be worthy of the military valor of our ancestors who sacrificed their lives for our Ukraine. Glory to Ukraine!”
The president noted that October 14 is a national holiday for everyone who loves Ukraine: “A holiday of those who felt their involvement in the protection of the homeland from Russian invaders and pro-Moscow mercenaries with their hearts, bodies and souls.” He added, “I’d like to cite an important historic detail: all empires that tried to attack, swallow and digest Ukraine have fallen. But Ukraine was, is and will continue to exist.”
Ukraine’s First Lady Maryna Poroshenko made a working visit on the Day of the Defender to the city of Mariupol, where she took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Monument of the Warrior-Liberator, as well as visited the military hospital and the Donetsk border detachment of Eastern Regional Department of the State Border Service of Ukraine.
Dr. Poroshenko noted: “Our country is going through a time of difficulties: every day we decide who is a friend and who is a foe, what is truth and what is a lie. By force of circumstances, you found yourselves on the frontline of this struggle, and Mariupol proved that each of you is ready to defend your home, family and children. You are not alone in this struggle. There are 47 million of us. We are a united country and we have a lot to be proud of and to protect.”
Source: Presidential Administration of Ukraine