Greetings on Day of National Emblem and Flag

Dear compatriots,

The National Emblem and the National Flag of the Republic of Belarus are the symbols of our historical memory, linking together the heroic past, the modern life of the country and its future.

The Belarusians have achieved their independence through the storms of the revolution, the First World War and the Civil War. During the dramatic but crucial period the life-affirming prototype of the present-day emblem of Belarus - the rising sun surrounded by a crown of ears - was enshrined in the Constitution of 1919. During the Great Patriotic War people defended the value of peace and the opportunity to live and work freely in their own land under the Victory Banner. The national Flag of the Republic of Belarus keeps a part of it.

Uniting under these symbols, preserving the heroic history of the country and honoring our ancestors, today we are together defending the sovereign right to develop in line with the primordial traditions and national interests.

I wish you a Happy Day of National Emblem and Flag. I wish you peace, wellbeing and new creative achievements for the benefit of the Motherland.

Aleksandr Lukashenko