Speech by Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, at the solemn commemoration of the Day of Restoration of the Independence of Lithuania

Your Excellency, Mr President, 

Your Excellencies, Speakers of Parliaments, 

Dear Saulius,

Your Excellency, Prime Minister, 

Your Excellency, Head of State of the Restored State of Lithuania,

Your Excellencies, Presidents, 

Signatories to the Act of Independence, 

Dear friends and the great Lithuanian nation, 

Today, I am greatly privileged to be here and, on behalf of the Ukrainian Parliament and the Ukrainian nation, to congratulate you on the 35th Anniversary of the Restoration of the Independence of Lithuania and the Independence of your Republic. 

Ukrainians know very well and remember what happened exactly 35 years ago and what it means to Lithuanians. It was back then, within these historical walls, that the act of justice was adopted –– the act that restored the statehood of Lithuania. At that time, it was Lithuania that had been the first to take the path of freedom and that had set an example for Ukraine. 

Ukrainians sincerely admired the courageous Lithuanians, who had thrown off their shackles once and for all and left the prison of nations. Ukrainians were deeply swayed by the spirit of dignity and freedom emanating from the Baltics, where the shameful collapse of the Russian Empire began. Even today, Lithuanians continue to be a role model of solidarity, loyalty, and true brotherhood to Ukraine. 

Therefore, let me now, on behalf of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the unyielding Ukrainians who continue to fight, say thank you, the great people of Lithuania! I would like to thank you for your credible support in horrible times, for your unparalleled dedication to giving everything, and for your acute awareness of the danger creeping from the East. We will never forget anything. We have been and will always be grateful to you. We will always offer you a reliable shoulder to lean on. 

Dear friends, 

Today is your day, and it must stay so forever. I very much want you all to know that no matter how difficult it may be for us and no matter what trials we have to endure in the future, we will never stop fighting for what is the most sacred for us –– our freedom and independence, our land, and the future of our children. I ask you to continue helping Ukraine in every possible way. Your support is vitally important today when we are making incredibly great efforts to stop the invaders, when we are trying to show to the world who is the aggressor and who is the victim, who defends one’s own land and who occupies foreign land, who wants to be part of the Euro-Atlantic community and who seeks to spread hatred and a KGB mindset within it. 

Dear friends, 

We will surely withstand hard times, just like you did at the beginning of 1990. We will certainly become part of the great European and Euro-Atlantic family. We will certainly remember all our sacrifices and, on the day of our great victory, we will sing the anthems of our countries in unison, with the following words resonating from your anthem, ‘Lithuania, our homeland, land of worshipped heroes! Let your sons draw their strength from our past experience’ and the following words from the Ukrainian anthem, ‘Soul and body shall we lay down for our freedom and show that we are brethren of the Cossack nation’. 

Glory to Ukraine, glory to Lithuania! Thank you!