On July 16, Ukraine will celebrate 35 years since the proclamation of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine. It was on this day in 1990 that the Supreme Council of the Ukrainian SSR, with a constitutional majority of people's deputies – 355 votes "for," four "against," and one abstention, adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine. The document proclaimed the sovereignty of Ukraine as the supremacy, independence, completeness, and indivisibility of the republic's power within its territory, independence, and equality in foreign relations. The Declaration became an important step towards independence. The basic provisions of this document later became the foundation for legislative acts of state significance – the Constitution and laws of Ukraine.
The Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine consisted of a preamble and 10 chapters. Almost all of its provisions contradicted the Constitution of the Ukrainian SSR in force at that time.
Immediately after the historic decision was made, an emotional Levko Lukyanenko declared in front of the Supreme Council: "This Declaration is a program for Ukraine's exit from the power of Moscow. It depends on us whether the Declaration will become a practical program for building an independent Ukraine or whether pro-Moscow orthodox communists will manage to turn it into another empty piece of paper."
The Declaration of State Sovereignty of Ukraine became the basis for the "Act of Proclamation of Independence of Ukraine," adopted by the Supreme Council on August 24, 1991.
The day of the Declaration's proclamation was declared a holiday and a day off in Ukraine. It is worth noting that for the first time, Ukraine celebrated Independence Day on July 16, 1991. That day was remembered for large-scale ceremonial rallies and demonstrations in many regions.
At that time, it seemed that the final point had been put in the imperial ambitions of Moscow, but the struggle for our independence continues to this day. Now — on the battlefield. But this time we will win and destroy the Moscow empire of evil!