Today is a very special day for our friends and allies from the United States of America, and although I'm able to write much less than I would like, I couldn't let the date pass without wishing everyone in this wonderful nation a Happy Independence Day. On behalf of all Ukrainians, here's my sincere wish that you are enjoying a joyful and peaceful holiday.
You are more than our allies. You are more than simply our partners in this fight for our existence. You are beyond being an inspiration for us to stay firm and keep our heads up against the Russian evil.
Throughout your history, dear USA, you have been challenged many times by forces that questioned your capacity to stay focused on the foundational principles laid out by Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and the other Founding Fathers. These principles—humanism, democracy, liberty, and justice—were not just ideals, but guidelines aimed at shaping a virtuous society.
You have experienced tough moments like the War of 1812 against the British Empire, the Civil War, the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War. These events constituted significant stress to your institutions and your society, but somehow you overcame them all. You managed not only to prevail but to strengthen those core principles during each of these moments.
In fact, dear United States, your value does not come only from your courage or from your resilience over these almost 250 years. It comes from your capacity to reinvent yourself during each crisis and reemerge more confident and stronger than ever before. A nation that, far from being perfect, strives to provide the freedom required for its people to better explore their talents, intelligence, humanity, and spirit of innovation.
The current situation in Ukraine offers an interesting parallel. Just as the USA has been repeatedly tested, Ukraine today fights for the same values that are so consecrated by the Americans. We believe in democracy, freedom, and justice. We believe that sovereignty is indispensable to express our pride in being Ukrainians, a privilege that has been denied to us throughout history and which we have experienced for only the last three decades.
And we will not give up, of course. When a population experiences freedom and self-determination, there's no way back. The way Ukrainians want to follow is the path provided by the values of the United States of America: the way of justice, the way of democracy. The way where every citizen is free to share the best they have inside their brain and heart with the community and the world.
The global support for Ukraine today echoes the historical alliances and support the USA received in its own times of need. Our destinies are somehow connected for the foreseeable future. That's why we are so excited to send our compliments today, and that's also why a date that celebrates your foundational values is also a day of celebration for us too.
Happy Fourth of July!