KYIV – Ukrainians paid tribute to fallen loved ones on Friday and vowed to fight on to victory, while Russia said its forces were making gains in battle in the east as its invasion entered a second year with no end in sight.
At a ceremony in Kyiv’s St. Sophia Square, a visibly emotional President Volodymyr Zelenskyy bestowed medals on soldiers, one on crutches, and the mother of one killed. He fought back tears when a band played the national anthem.
“We have become one family. There are no more strangers among us… Ukrainians have sheltered Ukrainians, opened their homes and hearts to those who were forced to flee the war,” he said in a televised address.
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