On Thursday 24 August the exterior facade of the Library of Birmingham will be lit up blue and yellow in support of Ukraine Independence Day.

Independence Day of Ukraine is the main state holiday in modern Ukraine,celebrated on 24 August in commemoration of the Declaration of Independence of 1991.

The current form of the holiday was first celebrated on 16 July 1991, as the first anniversary of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine passed by the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's parliament) in 1990.

Since the Declaration of Independence was issued on 24 August 1991, and confirmed by the referendum of 1 December 1991, the date of the holiday was changed.

Generally (but not every year) independence day is celebrated with a military parade held in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Since 2019 no military parade has taken place.

Article posted 17 August 2023