Explaining: Day Of Unity Of Ukraine

(MENAFN- UkrinForm) The Center for Strategic Communication and Information Security pursues efforts to provide a brief explanation to foreign audiences on the current topics of particular interest as regards Ukraine.

DAY OF UNITY OF UKRAINE

On January 22, Ukraine celebrates Day of Unity and the anniversary of the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR) declaration of independence.

● Day of Unity was established in 1999 to commemorate the unification of the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR) and t Western Ukrainian People's Republic (ZUNR) into a single independent state.

● This event took place on January 22, 1919, with the proclamation of the Act of Unification (Akt Zluky) on S Square in Kyiv.

● A year earlier, on January 22, 1918, the Fourth Universal of the Ukrainian Central Council declared the independence of the UNR.

● Both historical events, equally significant, marked importa stages in the national liberation struggle of the Ukrainian people.

● The memory of the UNR's statehood during 1917–1921 inspired subsequent generations of Ukrainians to continue the fig for freedom, culminating in restoring independence in 1991.

● The declaration of the UNR's independence debunks the Russian imperial myth that Ukraine gained independence only after the collapse of the USSR; in truth, it was the result of a conscious choice and a prolonged struggle.

● The Act of Unification challenges the imperial myth th Ukrainian lands were first united by Stali

● The Act was the culmination of a long-standing desire of Ukrainians, divided by imperial borders, to live united in an independent state.

● Today, Ukraine continues to defend its right to independence, which Russia seeks to take away.

● Ukraine will never relinquish its territories illegally annexed by the aggressor state or its citizens who remain under occupation.

● The unity of Ukrainians is the foundation of sovereignty, and sovereignty guarantees genuine independence and democratic development.

● Historical experience and current realities in the occupied territories clearly demonstrate that Ukrainians can enjoy security, rights, and freedoms only within their own independent state.

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