Today is Ukraine’s Independence Day. The 35th anniversary. A national holiday with a flavor profoundly changed by the war. 1,643 days of full-scale war.

These are the Agreement on Defence and Security Cooperation under the Drone Deal format and the Joint Declaration on a Strategic Partnership (the Ellisiv Accord). The document is named after the daughter of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, who married King Harald Hardrada and became Queen of Norway.

In Kyiv, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held six bilateral meetings with the heads of state and government of countries participating in the Ukraine–Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) Summit: the Presidents of Lithuania and Finland and the Prime Ministers of Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, and Norway.

The Head of State thanked the NB8 countries for standing with Ukraine throughout all these years of Russia’s full-scale aggression. The President emphasized that everyone understands Russia’s plans for this fall and winter. Ballistic missiles remain the main threat.

Representatives of Ukrainian youth from more than 35 countries joined the meeting – from Europe, the United States, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East.

The scientific and expert conference “A Mosaic of Experiences: An International Dialogue on Resilience” was held in Kyiv, opening the program of the VI Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen, “World 2026: Finding Stability in Times of Uncertainty.” First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Lithuania Diana Nausėdienė, and First Gentleman of Slovenia Aleš Musar took part in the event.

It’s very symbolic that we’re together today because, in fact, we have been together throughout every day of our defense during this challenging period, from the very beginning of this war.