For centuries, Ukrainian soil has given birth to those who stood up to defend it. From the days of the ancient Rus’ druzhina, through the heroic campaigns of the Cossacks, the liberation struggles of the 20th century, and to this day, when new generations defend the borders of the state, our people have never been indifferent to their freedom.
Freedom for Ukrainians is not just a word. It is the land that our fathers and grandfathers cultivated. It is the language in which lullabies are sung. It is the right to live with dignity and without fear. We know its value all too well – it is measured by the lives of the best among us.
Every era had its heroes. Those who left their homes and families to become a shield for others. Their courage was often silence after the battle, and their sacrifice was tears that cannot be wiped away. But it is thanks to them that we are still on this earth, speaking our language and having a future.
29 August is the day when Ukraine remembers those who did not return. Those whose names are engraved on monuments and memorial plaques, but even more so in the hearts of the people. It is a day when memory becomes a common prayer of the people, when we pause to bow our heads to the fallen.
We see their faces in old photographs and in modern photos. We hear about them in the memories of their comrades and in the whisper of the wind over the fields where the battle once took place. They are in our history, in the streets named in their honour, and in the silence of a moment of silence.
Ukraine will stand because it is defended by those who are not afraid to give their most precious gift. And it is our duty to preserve this memory, to tell our children and grandchildren about them, so that future generations know that freedom does not come by itself. It is fought for.
Let us bow our heads in silence. Let us remember. And may gratitude to those who gave their lives for Ukraine live in every heart.