On that same day twenty-nine years ago, the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) adopted the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine which was supported by Ukrainians at the all-Ukraine referendum in December 1991.

Cultural events and street festivities are usually held on that day. Regrettably, this time celebrations were not as massive as in previous years. None the less, on Independence Day, almost 20 thousand Ukrainians attended public concerts, art shows and other events that were held in the capital city of Kyiv.

Opening the celebrations on that August morning in St. Sophia Square, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the minute of silence to honour the memory of the fallen in struggle for the freedom and independence of this country. “Dear Ukrainians”, – said the President, – “always, but especially today on the Day of Independence, we bow our heads before the deeds of valour of our heroes who gave their lives for Ukraine, its future, its independence. Let’s honour their memory with the minute of silence”. While delivering his speech, the President remembered that a year ago his every morning used to start with SMS from the General Staff reporting on the wounded and killed in Donbas. And now, for the twenty-ninth day in a row there have been no injured and no killed, the President stated.

Zelenskyy stressed that all citizens of Ukraine regardless of the language, religion or nationality are brothers and sisters. He called not to give anyone any chance to sow discord between people. As for holding a military parade during Independence Day celebrations (Zelenskyy cancelled it on the day of his election to the office of the President), he promised that “we will definitely have a parade in the future. Ukrainian victory parade. When we bring back all our people and all our territories, when there is lasting peace on our land, we will make a big parade of all our troops and equipment”.

Besides the President, other well-known politicians congratulated Ukrainians on the state holiday. Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said that more than a third of the Ukrainian population was born in an independence state.

“Russian aggression against Crimea and Donbas has shown us that independence is not something given. Thousands of Ukrainians have perished in combat for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. Today, I want to thank all who fought and continue to fight for the independent state of Ukraine”.

Parliament Speaker Dmytro Razumkov also congratulated Ukrainians. He said, “Many things unite us. We are like parts of a big puzzle which together create a large independent European country. Without any of these parts, the picture will be not full, incomplete, imperfect. That’s why we should always remember the strength of our country. We should remember that we have only one Ukraine”.

The fifth President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko stressed that Independence Day for Ukrainians is “the holiday of holidays”.

“In Moscow, they were sure that Ukraine would dissolve for ever within the boundless spaces of the empire. But it has been reborn. We will never yield our freedom, our independence. Ukraine breathes freedom. Freedom is its oxygen”, wrote Poroshenko.

Presidents of the United States, France, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Hungary and other countries as well as Pope Francis and Queen Elizabeth congratulated Ukraine on Independence Day. All of them expressed their support of an independent Ukrainian nation. According to U.S. State Secretary Mike Pompeo, friendship between the United States and Ukraine has never been stronger.

On the occasion of the 29th anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence Day, he said on behalf of the United States government and the American people, “Our support for a free, resilient, and democratic Ukraine is unwavering. We remain fully committed to diplomatic efforts to end Russia’s ongoing aggression in eastern Ukraine. The United States rejects Russia’s attempted annexation of Crimea and pledges to maintain this policy until Russia returns full control of all Ukrainian territory to Ukraine”.
As for Russian President Vladimir Putin, he has sent no congratulation to official Kyiv as it has already become a tradition since the beginning of the aggression of Russia against Ukraine.

The newspaper Holos Ukrainy