On July 15, we celebrate the Day of Ukrainian Statehood and the Day of the Baptism of Rus-Ukraine.

This day proves to us that Ukraine has a thousand-year history of statehood. 

This day shows that statehood is not a gift but the result of daily work for the sake of Ukraine’s stability, victory, and development.

This holiday, introduced by the Decree of the President of Ukraine on August 24, 2021, is based on the perseverance and continuity of Ukraine’s state-building traditions from Rus to the present day. Ukraine’s experience in nation-building results from the efforts of many generations who sought to build a powerful state.

The roots of Ukrainian statehood can be traced back to the time of Kyivan Prince Volodymyr the Great. During this period, Ukraine embraced Christianity to align itself with European civilization. The state had a powerful capital in Kyiv, its currency was called the hryvnia, and the trident of Volodymyr served as a symbol of princely authority. Furthermore, the Principality of Galicia-Volhynia affirmed Ukraine’s European orientation and bestowed upon it the blue and yellow colors that now comprise the national flag.

As part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Ukrainians learned the European tradition of city government known as Magdeburg law, and the Presidents of independent Ukraine now take the oath of office over the Peresopnytsia Gospel written at that time.
The Ukrainian state also follows the great traditions of the Crimean Khanate, founded by the Giray dynasty, which was a golden age for the indigenous Crimean Tatar people, who are part of the Ukrainian political nation.

An outstanding chapter in the book of our statehood was the Ukrainian Cossack state — Zaporozhian Cossack Army or Hetmanate, whose military traditions formed the basis of the armed forces of the Ukrainian National Republic, the Ukrainian liberation movement, and the modern Security and Defense Forces of Ukraine. And the joint military campaigns of the Cossacks and Crimean Tatars have minted our invincibility and the power of the contemporary Ukrainian army.

The Ukrainian National Republic, the West Ukrainian National Republic, and the Ukrainian State brought democratic principles of state building, the first parliament and government, the coat of arms, the anthem, and the flag to Ukrainians. For the first time in several centuries, the ethnic Ukrainian territories were united into a single, independent state, and Hetman Pavlo Skoropadskyi established the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in November 1918.

The processes of statehood continued, and Carpathian Ukraine composed the words of our modern anthem, the World War II National Liberation Movement kept the blue and yellow flag and the trident as the state symbols of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian National Republic government in exile officially handed over the state reins in 1992.

Each of these epochs laid a solid basis for us to live in a united and independent Ukraine, fight for every meter of its territory, and build a powerful state for future generations. The blood of Yaroslav the Wise, Danylo Halytskyi, Sahaidachnyi, Khmelnytskyi, and Hacı I Giray flows in our veins, and the guidance of Skoropadskyi and Petrushevych was preserved in our memory. And today, thanks to the indomitable spirit of our country, the desire for freedom and independence, our defenders give all their strength and inspiration for the future of their country and its people.

Happy Ukrainian Statehood Day!

Glory to Ukraine!