Happy Defenders of Ukraine Day!

Happy Defenders of Ukraine Day!

Soul and body we will give

For our freedom

And show that we are, brothers,

Of the Cossack nation 

(National Anthem of Ukraine)

These lines are about you, Defenders of Ukraine! You are their living embodiment.

On this day, we honor every Ukrainian man and woman who, not by words but by deeds, with their blood, at the cost of their health and lives, stood up for the armed defense of their people, their values, and their state.

You manifest the true strength of the Ukrainian nation and its best qualities. Just as our glorious Cossack ancestors won the right to a free life on their land with the sword, today, you – the true descendants of the knightly family – continue their cause with weapons in your hands.

Employees of the Khortytsia National Reserve also serve with honor in the ranks of the Defense Forces of Ukraine. We are proud of each one of you!

On this day, we also remember all the Defenders of Ukraine who fell on the battlefield and bow our heads in their memory. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends” (Heb. from John 15:13). These words are about you. You stood up to protect your families, friends, loved ones, and the lives of those Ukrainians you never knew but whose lives were not indifferent to you. You defended Ukraine and gained the eternal glory and gratitude of Ukrainians.

The death of our colleague, scientist and real Zaporozhzhia Cossack Vyacheslav Zaitsev, a member of the ATO, a “cyborg” paratrooper, who defended the Motherland in the first days of the large-scale Russian attack in February 2022 remains a heart-wrenching pain for the reserve team. It was his last Cossack campaign. 

And during a combat mission, the paratrooper and real Cossack Maksym Shtatskyi, a senior researcher of the museum’s communications department, went missing.

The glory of the Cossacks did not die and yours will not die either!

Heroes never die!

The staff of the Khortytsia National Reserve congratulates the Defenders of Ukraine on the holiday and expresses enormous gratitude for your heroism!

You are Cossacks of the 21st century! You write the heroic history of our people!

We wish you and the whole of Ukraine only one thing – Victory!

Glory and honor to the Defenders of Ukraine!