On March 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his head of office, Kyrylo Budanov, joined an iftar – the evening meal that marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. This was reported by the press service of the President's Office.
The event was held at the Kyiv Islamic Cultural Center. It was attended by Ukrainian Muslim soldiers, Crimean Tatar leaders, representatives of the Muslim community, and clergy.
The head of state recalled that the Muslim community of Ukraine and the Crimean Tatar people are celebrating their 13th Ramadan amid Russian aggression and expressed hope that the next holy month will begin in peace.
During the dinner, Zelenskyy praised the role of Muslim soldiers in defending Ukraine and presented them with state awards. Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers and National Police officers were awarded the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 5th Class, the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, 3rd Class, the Order "For Courage," 3rd Class, the Order of Danylo Halytsky, as well as the medals "For Military Service to Ukraine" and "Zakh."
It is noted that among the servicemen present at the event were fighters from units formed by ethnic Chechens. In particular, the commander of the Armed Forces of Ichkeria, Abdul Hakim (Rustam Azhiyev), and the Ukrainian representative of the Ichkerian government abroad, known by the call sign Ansar, participated in the meal. Hundreds of Chechen volunteers are fighting on the Ukrainian side—mostly the sons and grandsons of emigrants who took part in the first or second Russo-Chechen wars. They are known to be fighting in five Chechen militant groups, the most prominent of which are the Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion and the Sheikh Mansur Battalion.
According to Ukrinform, in his iftar speech, the president emphasized that Ukraine remembers all the lands under temporary occupation, including Crimea.
"We remember all our lands, every community in Ukraine, our east, Donbas, our Crimea. And we will not give Russia anything Ukrainian. This is our principled position. And not just one person in Ukraine, not just one state, or not just one state, but truly the position of millions of people," said Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
He also mentioned the ongoing fighting in the Middle East.
"We hope that the regime in Iran will not win, because it is an inhumane regime. It is spreading the war across virtually the entire region. It is important that people and countries can defend themselves so that the war there does not drag on. "I thank every state that genuinely helps protect life and our defense here in Ukraine," Zelenskyy said, noting that the Iranian and Moscow regimes were not so close for nothing: they share a lack of respect for people.
"We all, in Europe and around the world, must be effective in defending ourselves against precisely such regimes; we must be effective so that life benefits," the Ukrainian president concluded.
