President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Ukrainians on the country’s Independence Day and emphasized the strengths of Ukraine and all its citizens that help maintain the front line.
"One thousand six hundred and forty-three days of full-scale war. Right now, it is really very, very difficult for all of us, but a certain force holds us tightly by the hand—one that is actually not invisible at all. It is the power of a mutual circle—supporting one another, having no doubts about the person standing beside you, and believing in all Ukrainians. And as long as the enemy cannot break this circle of ours, Ukraine will not fall. It will achieve its peace, and it will endure," Zelenskyy said in a greeting on Monday morning.
According to him, when planning the attack, the enemy counted Ukrainian resources, stockpiles, and equipment, but failed to take into account the people who make up the state and take responsibility upon themselves.
"We are already defeating Russia through all of this: through will, technology, resilience, and dignity. Through those pure feelings that live within us despite the war. We have preserved tenderness, though we could have become brutalized. We preserved honesty where things could have been blamed on the war. We preserved the habit of being the first to help without asking whether it is your trouble. We preserved the human within ourselves… We did not become hardened as an entire country; as an entire country we fight, laugh, cry, and love. And through this, we are a hundred times stronger than Russia," the President emphasized.
