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 the 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 Sofia 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 important 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 fight 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 that Ukrainian lands were first united by Stalin.
● 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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