The Presidential Appeal of the Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in the Second World War of 1939-1945
Asia, Australia, Africa - everyone has their own history of struggle in that war, but a common history of victory. It is on May 8 that the greatness of the victory over Nazism is mentioned by most peoples of the world. The world bows to anyone who has protected and protected their lives. Who dropped Nazi flags in the liberated territory and who opened the gates of concentration camps. Who returned the people of the people who destroyed and condemned the Nazi evil.
It was on May 8, 1945 that the act of unconditional surrender of the Wehrmacht came into force. It is on May 8 that the world honors the memory of all whose lives were taken away by that war. This is a pure story, without ideological impurities. And this is the story of our people, our allies, the whole free world. Today we return it to our country.
Today, I submit to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine a bill that is proposed to set on May 8, a day of memory and victory over Nazism in the Second World War of 1939-1945. We will never forget the contribution of the Ukrainian people to victory over Nazism. And we will not allow anyone to erase the role of Ukrainians in this victory, our people, the generation that we will keep the memory in almost every family.
We will not allow to assign a common victory for the peoples of the anti -Hitler coalition and we will not lie that the victory could take place without the participation of a country or people. Evil we destroyed together! Just as we are now opposed to a similar evil. Recalling the heroism of millions of Ukrainians in that war against Nazism, we see the same heroism in the actions of our soldiers now-the descendants of those who won-the surrender of Nazism that day, May 8, 45.
And we are proud of the heroism of the Ukrainian people! Then and now. Evil, unfortunately, returned. As evil was rushing to our cities and villages, he does it now. As our people were killed then, he does it now. Although there is another aggressor now, the same goal is to enslave or destroy. And just like in World War II, we are not alone against evil right now. We fight against him together - with the whole free world. With the states and peoples who then created a common victory.
What, remembering the terrible years of that war, they do not say "we can repeat!", But protect the meaning of the words "never again!" Who did not betray their heroes and preserve the power of our common values - human life and freedom, equality and dignity and world without xenophobia and anti -Semitism, without racism and intolerance, without ideologies of hatred. We fought then and are fighting now to ensure that no one ever enslaved other peoples and destroy other countries.
And all the old evil that modern Russia returns will be broken in the same way as Nazism has been broken. In contrast to our ideals, this enemy again put aggression and annexation, occupation and deportation, massacres and torture, bombing of cities and burning of villages. All this will be our victory! Victory of Ukraine and the free world. The liberation of our lands. Return of our people. Protection of our values.
And necessarily - justice, it is obligatory - justice against rashist ideology of hatred. Dear Ukrainians! Now, like 80 years ago, Ukraine is fighting against total evil. Now, like 80 years ago, Ukraine is beating for the future - both its and all of Europe, the whole free world. Now, like 80 years ago, we rely on the common power of free peoples and know that with them we will always be part of free Europe that will not obey evil.
And together with all Free Europe on May 9, we will celebrate Europe Day in Ukraine. The united Europe, which should be based on peace. Our Europe, which Ukraine has always been, is and will be. Today I signed the relevant decree, and every year in the day, on May 9, we will honor our historical unity - the unity of all Europeans who destroyed Nazism and defeat Rashism. It will be Europe Day that supports Ukrainians for nine years of aggression and has been a full -scale invasion for 439 days.
It will be a Europe Day, which helps us fight in all directions: on the battlefield of weapons, on a diplomatic leader - determination, against rocket terror and winter blackout, in the economy and at the legal front. It will be Europe Day - our ally. Which gives shelter to Ukrainian women and children. Which does not encroach on our sovereignty and calls into doubt our right to our own choice of national path. Which never calls Ukraine "fictional" or "artificial" formation.
And which gives us our weapons so we can protect ourselves and her - our Europe! Many years ago, our continent has established a tradition of celebrating Europe Day to celebrate the achieved peace and unity. Today, unity on our continent brings us closer to the celebration of the first day of our peace. The honest memory of the past always strengthens the faith in the future.
Today, by paying tribute to the most important victory of the twentieth century, we all wait and approach a new big day - a new victory. Our victory. Victory Day of Ukraine. Certainly in common. Which we will get with everyone who helps us now. We will remember every state and every people who have become in the struggle for freedom with us. We will never say that victory could happen without any of them.
It will be a common success, but I am sure that the world will call this day equally - Victory Day of Ukraine. The day we expel the last occupier from our land. The day we release all our cities and villages. The day when the curfew will change the first minute of peace throughout Ukraine. When we can forget about the application "Air Anxiety". When the warriors return to their families and the displaced persons to their home.
When we can safely travel our country and discover its beauty again and again. When we meet guests of Ukraine, friends of Ukraine in our airports in Boryspil, Simferopol, and in our other cities. In free cities of free Ukraine! We will not lose, we will return everything passionately passionate about the enemy, we will be destroyed and we will protect it together.
We do not know yet to give our victory, but we know that it will be a holiday for the whole of Ukraine, for the whole of Europe, for the whole free world. There will be a holiday of all our heroes - our defenders and defenders, all our people who are fighting and working for the sake of our victory, all our allies and partners who seek our victory in the same way as we are. And our victory will be a symbol-a blue-yellow ribbon, our Ukrainian flag. Everywhere it should be right.