On 22 January, Ukraine annually marks the Day of Unity – the day of the proclamation of a Unification Act of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic.

The Unification Act has crowned the desire for Sobornist (voluntary association) of Ukrainians in both parts of Ukraine – the Dnieper Ukraine and the Dniester Ukraine – at least since the middle of the XIX century. This event became the starting point for the history of modern Ukrainian statehood.

Historians rightly point out that on 24 August 1991, Ukraine’s state independence was actually restored. Because for the first time in the XX century Ukrainian independence was proclaimed on 22 January 1918, by the IV Universal of the Central Council of Ukraine, and on 22 January 1919, an equally important event took place – the unification of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic into single state.

But due to the failures of the Ukrainian revolution of 1917–1921, statehood could not be preserved. And as a result, during the twentieth century, Ukrainians were forced to repeatedly restore it in the struggle.

The memory of the unification of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and the Western Ukrainian People’s Republic was kept by the inhabitants of Western Ukraine and Ukrainian political emigration in Western Europe and America and in fact on 22 January they solemnly celebrated the holiday of Independence and Unity of the Ukrainian state.

The memory of Ukrainians about the existence of their own state in 1917–1921 became one of the cornerstones of the formation of the modern national identity of our people, inspired the continuation of the liberation struggle.

Eventually, it ended with the restoration of independence. On 24 August 1991, an extraordinary session of the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian SSR adopted the Act of Independence of Ukraine. On 1 December 1991, it was supported by Ukrainians in the All-Ukrainian referendum.

Sobornist is not only a memory of the past, it remains on the agenda of national tasks today.

Of course, today we are all well aware that the restoration of the unity of the modern Ukrainian state will take place after the deoccupation of Crimea and certain districts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and this requires our united joint work and cooperation both in Ukraine and abroad.

Happy holiday!

Glory to Ukraine!

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Photo: Ukrinform