Zelenskyy marks Armed Forces Day with address to Ukraine’s soldiers
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy extended his greetings to Ukrainian military personnel and all citizens on Armed Forces Day, emphasizing Ukraine's forthcoming liberation of the temporarily occupied territories and victory over the aggressor, Russia.
“Today, only one thing comes to my mind — ‘well done.’ Only one emotion — gratitude. And only one wish — to win,” said Zelenskyy in his address on Dec. 6 to mark Armed Forces Day. “Commanders, please take care of your soldiers. Take care of yourselves, be yourselves. I congratulate you on Armed Forces Day!”.
Zelenskyy expressed the dreams of Ukrainians — the liberation of the temporarily occupied territories and victory over Russia.
“Behind us is the daily struggle for the temporarily occupied territories. Ahead of us is their liberation. How else could it be?” the Ukrainian President said.
“These are our lands, these are our people. Is there an alternative? No. Behind us are nine years and 651 days of war. Ahead of us is victory.”
Ukraine inherited one of Europe's most powerful military forces from the Soviet Union, equipped with nuclear weapons, relatively modern military technologies, and one million soldiers back in 1991.
Strategic nuclear forces on Ukrainian territory comprised 176 intercontinental ballistic missiles carrying a total of 1,272 nuclear warheads and around 2,500 units of tactical nuclear weapons. Ukraine became the first and, to date, only country in the world to voluntarily relinquish its nuclear weapons in exchange for “security guarantees” in 1994.
Over the decades of Ukrainian independence, massive reductions in military personnel occurred, with some abandoning service due to a lack of opportunity. Chronic funding shortages led to gradual decrease of the military strength. Archaic equipment was destroyed as part of disarmament efforts with virtually no resupply of stockpiles.
Ukrainians meet Armed Forces Day amid a full-scale invasion by Russia for the second year in a row. Despite all problems, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have demonstrated their ability to resist the once mighty Russian army.
Ukraine ranks 15th out of 145 in the Global Firepower index of the world's most powerful armies as of January 2023, marking an improvement from its 22nd position a year before. Ukraine is currently enhancing its military capabilities with the help of Western allies and has declared its intention to join NATO.
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