"The phrase 'Defender of the Fatherland' has ceased to be a mere abstract and ritualistic expression. Now it has acquired a concrete significance... In the rich and varied history of Ukrainian armies, there are countless battles and dates worthy of being elevated to a Day of the Defender of the Fatherland. I repeat: Ukraine will never again commemorate this holiday by following a historical battles calendar of a neighboring country. We will honor defenders of our Fatherland, not a foreign country's!"
"The events of the past months have become for us a very real, although undeclared, war. Perhaps it will enter the history books as the 2014 War for the Fatherland - a war against foreign aggression, a war to defend Ukraine, its freedoms, its honor and glory, its peoples, its independence".
It is to be noted that a military parade took place in Kyiv. All vehicles and equipment then immediately moved out for the Anti Terror Operations zone.
[hr]Source: http://tvi.ua/news translated by Adrian Bryttan
