Ukraine celebrated the 26th anniversary of its independence with a large-scale military parade on Aug. 24 featuring the country’s top defense officials and foreign troops.
On this day in 1991, the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian Soviet Republic approved a declaration of independence that was confirmed at a referendum on Dec. 1 the same year.
In recent years, the tone of the traditional military parades on Aug. 24 has been set by the ongoing war with Russia – the country that remains the main threat to Ukraine’s independence today.
Speaking at the parade, the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that the Ukrainian territories in the Donbas and Crimea taken by Russia by force in 2014 would be returned, despite the Kremlin’s refusal to honor peace agreements and its continuing support for its proxy forces in the Donbas.
Over 10,000 people have been killed in Russia’s war in eastern Ukraine, Poroshenko said, and they will not be forgotten. They were honored with a minute of silence during the parade.
He added that 200,000 soldiers had been drafted in six waves of mobilization to the Ukrainian Army, over 100,000 have enrolled as volunteer fighters, while 130,000 trained soldiers remain in reserve and are ready to go to the front line if the conflict escalates.
As a demonstration of its resolve, Ukraine showcased its military units and equipment as well as the support of its allies at the parade.
Some 4,500 soldiers and cadets of Ukrainian armed forces, special services, National Guard and Border Guard Service and veterans of war participated in the parade.
Moreover, for the first time, some 231 foreign soldiers – from the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Estonia, and Romania – marched down Khreshchatyk Street in the parade.
U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis became the first U.S. defense chief to visit Ukraine in a decade. He was accompanied by the U.S. special representative to Ukraine Kurt Volker, for whom it also was the first Independence Day celebration since his appointment in July.
Poroshenko said the 26th year of independence had been special, as it had seen the country set a firm course towards membership of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
He emphasized the importance of two key events: the approval of visa-free travel to Schengen Area countries in May, and the final ratification of the Ukrainian-EU Association Agreement, which comes into force in a week, on Sept. 1.
“Dogs bark, caravans move on,” the President said. “The last thing Russia wants is to see Ukraine succeed. But despite all of the difficulties we will succeed. Our sovereignty has given us a chance that we can’t miss.”
