AP

Ukrainians reflect on anniversary of Russian invasion

Feb 23, 2023, 12:36 PM | Updated: Feb 26, 2023, 1:12 pm

Anastasiia Okhrimenko, 26, reacts next to the grave of her husband Yurii Stiahliuk, a Ukrainian ser...

Anastasiia Okhrimenko, 26, reacts next to the grave of her husband Yurii Stiahliuk, a Ukrainian serviceman who died in combat on Aug. 24 in Marinka, during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in a cemetery in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

(AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)


              Anastasiia Okhrimenko, 26, reacts next to the grave of her husband Yurii Stiahliuk, a Ukrainian serviceman who died in combat on Aug. 24 in Marinka, during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in a cemetery in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
            
              Maj. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, Ukraine's military intelligence chief, center, attends a commemorative event on the occasion of the Russia Ukraine war one year anniversary in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
            
              Anastasiia Okhrimenko, 26, reacts next to the grave of her husband Yurii Stiahliuk, a Ukrainian serviceman who died in combat on Aug. 24 in Marinka, during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in a cemetery in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
            
              A woman cries during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in a cemetery in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
            
              Olha Kosianchuk, 64, cries during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. Olha's husband was killed during the occupation of Bucha by Russian troops during the first weeks of the war. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
            
              A woman and her daughter stand as they listen to a prayer for fallen soldiers at Lviv cemetery, western Ukraine, on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. Family members gathered at the military cemetery in Lviv for a "lights of memory" event to honor those who died fighting Russian invasion. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
            
              Olha Kosianchuk, 64, cries during a memorial service to mark the one-year anniversary of the start of the Russia Ukraine war, in Bucha, Ukraine, Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. Olha's husband was killed during the occupation of Bucha by Russian troops during the first weeks of the war. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The anniversary on Friday of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was a somber day for many of the country’s 43 million people. Here’s a selection of what some of them said:

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“I can sum up the last year in three words: Fear, love, hope.” — Oleksandr Hranyk, a school director in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.

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“For me, it’s a terrible pain and a day where I don’t want to go back in my thoughts, rewatch photos or videos. A very tough day.” — Daria Horda, 25, who hasn’t seen her family in Russian-occupied Nova Kakhovka since Moscow’s troops rolled across Ukraine’s borders on Feb. 24, 2022.

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“This day has become a symbol for me that we have survived for a whole year and will continue to live.” — Tetiana Klimkova, a Kyiv resident who has a ribbon on her purse in Ukraine’s blue and yellow national colors.

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“Victory is ours; Young people will live.” — Nelia Zamostian, 62, who was attending a church memorial service in Bucha, a town outside Kyiv that became an early symbol of Russian atrocities.

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“We have been standing for exactly one year. And we still know: every tomorrow is worth fighting for.” — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

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“We celebrate not a year of the war, but a year of resilience, humanity and salvation. A year of united Ukraine that has changed the world.” — Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska.

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“Ukraine is entering a new period, with a new task — to win” — Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov.

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“It’s hard not to imagine that from now on, we’re more than a year apart from our normal lives.” — Ukrainian writer Viktoria Amelina.

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Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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