During the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented state awards to representatives of local self-government bodies and military administrations, as well as the honorary distinctions “Hero City of Ukraine”.
The Order of Merit, I class, was awarded to the Mayor of Myrhorod (Poltava region) Serhii Solomakha.
The Order of Merit, III class, was presented by the President to: the Head of Yasinia Settlement Council (Zakarpattia region) Andrii Deliatynchuk, the Head of Mahdalynivka Settlement Council (Dnipro region) Volodymyr Drobitko, the Head of Velyki Luchky Village Council (Zakarpattia region) Vasyl Koshtura, the Head of Drabiv Settlement Council (Cherkasy region) Svitlana Orel, the Head of the Borozenske Village Military Administration (Kherson region) Alona Okhrimovska, a member of the Khust District Council (Zakarpattia region) Nazarii Pavlii, the Head of Horodok Village Council (Rivne region) Serhii Polishchuk, the Head of the Mykolaiv Regional Council Anton Tabunshchyk, and the Head of Velykyi Kuchuriv Village Council (Chernivtsi region) Vasyl Toderenchuk.
The Order of Courage, II class, was awarded to the Mayor of Kharkiv Ihor Terekhov, while the Order of Princess Olga, II class, was awarded to the Head of Bilenke Village Council (Zaporizhzhia region) Svitlana Zachepylo, and the Order of Princess Olga, III class, to the Head of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Council Olena Zhuk.
The President also presented the honorary distinctions “Hero City of Ukraine”.
Among the honored cities were those in the Donetsk region: Druzhkivka, Kostiantynivka, Kramatorsk, Pokrovsk, and Slovyansk, which for a long time served as a frontline stronghold and rear base for Ukrainian defenders, and are now facing increasingly intense enemy attacks and destruction.
In the Zaporizhzhia region, the distinction was awarded to Huliaipole, around which heavy fighting continues, and Orikhiv, which has been under constant Russian strikes since the first days of the full-scale Russian invasion.
In the Kharkiv region, Kupyansk was recognized, which remains in the active combat zone and under constant Russian shelling.
Marhanets, Nikopol, and Pavlohrad in the Dnipro region, which are continuously shelled by the enemy, but thanks to the organization and resilience of their residents, continue to live.
Starokostiantyniv in Khmelnytskyi region, which has strategic importance for the country’s defense capability and has been under continuous attack since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Sumy, which was encircled at the beginning of the full-scale Russian aggression but saw the occupiers forced to retreat by Ukrainians. Trostianets in the Sumy region, which was occupied on the first day of the full-scale Russian invasion. The occupation lasted 31 days. It was there that the enemy’s advance towards Okhtyrka, Lebedyn, and Sumy was stopped.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy established the honorary distinction “Hero City of Ukraine” on March 6, 2022, conferring it on Volnovakha, Hostomel, Mariupol, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Chernihiv; on March 24, 2022, to Bucha, Irpin, Mykolaiv, and Okhtyrka; and on September 30, 2025, to another 16 cities across seven regions of Ukraine: Bashtanka, Voznesensk, Huliaipole, Druzhkivka, Kostiantynivka, Kramatorsk, Kupyansk, Marhanets, Nikopol, Orikhiv, Pavlohrad, Pokrovsk, Slovyansk, Starokostiantyniv, Sumy, and Trostianets. In total, 26 Ukrainian cities have now been awarded the distinction “Hero City of Ukraine”.
