08 February 2014, 09:00
To veterans of the Great Patriotic War,
citizens of Nikopol,
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast
Dear friends!
I sincerely congratulate you on the 70th anniversary of liberating Nikopol from fascist invaders.
During these days we are commemorating great warriors of the 3rd and 4th Ukrainian front lines who, by displaying massive heroism on military borders, in the far 1944, as a result of Nikopol-Kryvyi Rih operation, liberated the city from invaders and returned an important industrial centre of the country to our Homeland.
Troubled military years have turned hundreds of Ukrainian cities into ruins, and have left thousands of families orphaned. A great burden of war has not left behind Nikopol. But your fellow citizens have survived.
Today we bow low to courage of those who have kept in their heart love for their Homeland, who have rebuilt the city reviving it from the ashes.
I wish all citizens of Nikopol good health, happiness and welfare. May this date help us realize our belonging to the fortune of our Homeland, comprehend its history, and think over its present and future!
Honour and glory to veterans-liberators, to brave soldiers of the Victory! Eternal memory to those who gave their lives for our mother-Ukraine!
Volodymyr RYBAK
Kyiv,
February 8, 2014