Society & Culture

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov emphasized that the prisoner exchange lists were compiled with a single overriding criterion: to save lives. According to Ukrinform, Umerov shared this on Facebook. "Today, following agreements reached at the meeting in Istanbul, Ukraine managed to return 390 of our citizens from Russian captivity. This achievement is the result of unified coordination among all institutions acting on behalf of the President of Ukraine," Umerov stated. He underscored that all key bodies involved in the exchange process operated as a unified team, driven by the singular mission of bringing people home as swiftly as possible. Read…

President Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded honorary distinctions to three brigades of the Ukrainian Navy’s Marine Corps. The 38th Separate Marine Brigade was granted an honorary name, while the 36th and 37th Brigades were recognized for their courage and bravery. According to Ukrinform, the relevant decrees were published on the official website of the President of Ukraine. Specifically, the 38th Separate Marine Brigade has been granted the honorary title “named after Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi.” It will henceforth be referred to as the 38th Separate Marine Brigade named after Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.…

On Friday, May 23, Ukraine marks Heroes' Day, a commemoration dedicated to Ukrainian defenders,both men and women, who fight for the nation’s freedom and independence. This is reported by Ukrinform. According to the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, the idea of Heroes' Day originated among Ukrainian nationalists. The holiday was officially established by the Second Grand Assembly of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) in April 1941 in Kraków, which decreed three organizational holidays: Unity Day (January 22), Heroes’ Day (May 23), and the Day of Struggle (August 31). The date May 23 was chosen for a reason. It coincides…

Ukraine's Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications, Mykola Tochytskyi, took part in events marking the 164th anniversary of Taras Shevchenko's reburial and visited St. George's Cathedral in Kaniv, which has now been officially transferred for use by the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU). The ministry said this in a statement seen by Ukrinform. "This very church is where Ukrainians bid farewell to Taras Shevchenko 164 years ago. From now on, it belongs to the spiritual space of independent Ukraine," the statement reads. The cathedral hosted the first nationwide interfaith prayer service, led by His Beatitude Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kyiv and…

“Authorities” in the temporarily occupied territory of Luhansk region plan to shut down dozens of schools due to a lack of students, according to Oleksiy Kharchenko, head of the Luhansk Regional Military Administration. "More than 100 schools in the so-called LPR will be closed this year, primarily due to the absence of students. While occupation authorities claim residents are returning to these territories, they simultaneously acknowledge that schools in numerous towns and villages remain empty. According to the invaders, parents have supported the closure of these educational institutions," Kharchenko wrote on Telegram. He also noted that many settlements in the…

President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting with representatives of national minorities and indigenous peoples of Ukraine to discuss community coordination with the state and the implementation of the law on indigenous peoples. According to Ukrinform, Zelensky shared details of the meeting in a post on Telegram. “I met with representatives of national minorities and indigenous peoples of Ukraine. Yesterday, for the first time, we celebrated the Day of Interethnic Harmony and Cultural Diversity. Our country is multinational, and that is our strength. We all feel mutual support and understanding, we live together, and we fight together to live in peace,”…

During the second Summit of Ministers of Social Policy, Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal spoke about the key areas of social transformation of Ukraine. According to Ukrinform, Shmyhal wrote about this in Telegram. “Ukraine is transforming in all areas, and social policy is no exception. Even in the midst of the war, we continue reforms, adapting our approaches to European standards. During the second Summit of Ministers of Social Policy on “Building a Sustainable Society: Innovative Solutions for Demographic Change,” I spoke about the key areas of our social transformation,” Shmyhal said. Read also: Ukraine's Shmyhal, UK's Lammy discuss…

The Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War has prepared and handed over to the Russian side a list of names for exchange in the “1000 for 1000” format. Andrii Yusov, deputy head of the Coordination Center for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, told Ukrinform in a commentary. “I can confirm the fact that the lists of our prisoners of war have been handed over to the Russian side,” he said. As reported, today President Volodymyr Zelensky held a meeting to prepare for the 1000-for-1000 exchange, after which he said that details are being clarified for each…

Daria Zarivna, the chief operating officer of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative, said that the number of Ukrainian children deported by Russia could be much higher than the officially known figure. The operational director of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative said this on television, Ukrinform reports. “Currently, we have information about 19,546 children who were illegally deported or forcibly displaced. At the same time, it is important to understand that this figure can be much higher, because in 2022, the Russians, namely Maria Lvova-Belova, called the figure of 744,000 Ukrainian children who were taken to the territory of…

The process of enlisting convicted individuals into the ranks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is ongoing, with around 1,500 applications currently under consideration. There is high demand for recruits from this category in combat units. Deputy Minister of Justice Yevhen Pikalov said this in comments to Ukrinform. "This process [of convicted individuals joining the Ukrainian Armed Forces] is ongoing. According to the latest data, 8,500 convicts have joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces within one year of the relevant law coming into force, and another approximately 1,500 applications are currently under review," the official said. According to him, those mobilized from…