President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with service members of the Territorial Defense Forces and presented them with state awards.
He thanked the warriors for their service and for defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our state, and congratulated them on Territorial Defense Day, which is observed in Ukraine every year on the first Sunday of October.
“I am grateful to each and every one of you for remaining in the ranks, in combat. I am especially grateful for your defense of our state in the first days of the full-scale invasion. The most important thing is victory. And that is what I wish for you above all – I wish you victory. And all of us will support you every day,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted.
The President emphasized that it is very important to remember each and every person who gave their life for Ukraine. These people will forever remain in the history of our state. Those present honored the memory of the fallen defenders with a minute of silence.
The Head of State awarded Territorial Defense warriors the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, III class, the Orders “For Courage,” II and III classes, and the Order of Princess Olga, III class. Among those decorated were service members who took part in defending Ukraine in the Bakhmut, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk sectors, in the Zaporizhzhia and Sumy regions, as well as participants in the Kursk operation. They repelled enemy assaults, eliminated occupiers, and saved the lives of their brothers-in-arms.
