President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited the forward positions of one of the mechanized brigades during a working trip to the city of Bakhmut, Donetsk region, and presented state awards to servicemen, the press secretary of the president, Serhiy Nikiforov, said.
"Volodymyr Zelenskiy made a working trip to the Donetsk region, where he met with Ukrainian military personnel who are defending the city of Bakhmut. The president visited the advanced positions of one of the mechanized brigades, the personnel of which are confronting the enemy on the approaches to the city," Nikiforov wrote on Facebook.
While in the area of hostilities, Zelenskiy thanked the Ukrainian soldiers for their courage, resilience and strength, which they demonstrate while repelling enemy attacks. Those present honored the memory of the fallen heroes with a moment of silence.
The head of state presented state awards to military personnel. In particular, they were received by soldiers of mechanized, motorized infantry, mine-assault, tank, artillery and airmobile units.
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, told the Ukrainian military in Bakhmut that "the protection of Ukraine, not Donbas, rests on their shoulders."
"We see what remains after they pass - nothing alive. The issue is not in Donbas. You protect all of Ukraine. After Donbas, they will do it in other cities as well. They don't want anything from Ukrainians," he said, speaking on Tuesday before the award ceremony, the press service of the President's Office reports.
"On your shoulders is the protection not of Donbas, but of the whole of Ukraine. I wish you the resilience with which you live and overcome. History remembers only the winners, the strong and the brave," he also said.
Zelenskiy noted that "we drove through Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka; on this path, Ukrainian people, the same houses and the same grief brought by the insatiable neighborhood."
Also, the Ukrainian military in Bakhmut handed over the flag of Ukraine to the president with a request to hand it over to our brothers in America.
"For weapons?" - Zelenskiy asked and added: "We will pass everything on."
"We have a difficult situation, the enemy is increasing its numbers. We will thank the US Congress and the president for their support," he said on the air of the FREEDOM TV channel.
"It seems to me that Bakhmut heroes should get the same as any other person. Their children, families: that everything would be normal, warm, and healthy. I want to wish that there was light, but the situation is that there is light, then there is not. The main thing is that the light is inside," he said.