On August 18, a reburial ceremony of the remains of Colonel of the Army of the Ukrainian Peopleʼs Republic, the first chairman of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists Yevhen Konovalets took place at the National Military Memorial Cemetery in Kyiv.
This was reported by “Ukrinform”.
President Volodymyr Zelensky was present at the ceremony. He noted that Ukraine will also bring other figures home.
"Today, there are still many names of those who fought for Ukraine, who inspired and created for the sake of Ukraine and, unfortunately, are not resting in Ukraine. We will do everything to return each and every one of the true Ukrainian heroes to their native land, step by step. This is a noble, truly noble goal and our duty to them and to everyone with whom they fought side by side for Ukraine to be itself," Zelensky noted.
The remains of the first head of the OUN were temporarily reburied at the National War Memorial Cemetery. Later, they are planned to be reburied in the Ukrainian National Pantheon.
Getty Images / «Babel'»
Who is Yevhen Konovalets?
Yevhen Konovalets (1891–1938) was a Ukrainian military and political figure, colonel of the UNR Army, one of the commanders of the Sich Riflemen during the Ukrainian Revolution of 1917–1921. After the defeat of the liberation struggle, he became one of the founders of the Ukrainian Military Organization (UVO), which he headed in 1920.
In 1929, Konovalets became the first head of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), created to fight for the restoration of Ukraineʼs independence. He tried to build the organization as an all-Ukrainian political movement and to attract Ukrainian emigration and international support to the struggle. On May 23, 1938, Konovalets died in Rotterdam as a result of a special operation by the NKVD.
- In May, another leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, Colonel of the UNR Army Andriy Melnyk, and his wife Sofia Fedak-Melnyk were reburied at the same cemetery.
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