РНБОУ National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine

Greetings of Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov on the occasion of the Day of the Ukrainian Volunteer Fighter

Dear soldiers-volunteers, glorious sons and daughters of Ukraine! I sincerely congratulate on the holiday!

Four years ago, when a violent and brutal enemy attacked Ukraine, I called all conscious patriots to take arms and defend their Homeland. Then, the true Ukrainian patriots went straight to the front from the Maidan, and, having no military training, high-quality weapons, or even military uniforms, stopped the Russian invasion.

Deep honor for you and eternal glory!

We bow our heads low before the heroes who died, defending their native land!

Thanks to the heroism and self-sacrifice of our volunteer fighters, who went first and enshielded their country, Ukraine outstood and proved to the whole world that it is capable of protecting itself. We proved that our state was, is and will be! Thanks to your courage it became possible to win necessary time for creating a powerful army, restoring the defense-industrial complex, developing and producing new weapons.

May God save you and your families!

Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the Heroes!