Donetsk, May 11 - DAN. DPR Head Alexander Zakharchenko handed in Orders of Friendship to representatives of the Russian, South Ossetian and Abkhazian delegations on Thursday as the Republic was celebrating the 3rd anniversary of DPR independence referendum.
The award ceremony took place at the Solovyanenko Donetsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre.
“What we’ve done in three years is next to impossible, something many states cannot accomplish in decades. We’ve laid the groundwork of our statehood, we restore, we build, we fight. Regrettably, our country sometimes learns from its mistakes, but they get fewer each year. On this day, I wish to congratulate all those who are here, at their workplaces and on the frontline. “Long Live the Republic!” Zakharchenko said.
Among the awardees are South Ossetia President Anatoliy Bibilov, South Ossetian Foreign Minister Murat Dzhioyev, Abkhazian Foreign Minister Dour Kove, Abkhazia People’s Assembly member Leon Dashchyan, Russian Federation Council members Sergey Mamedov and Olga Kovitidi, employee of the DPR representation office in Italy Eliseo Bertolasi and Finnish political analyst Johan Bäckman. The DPR leader handed in ten Orders of Friendship overall.
Also, Zakharchenko decorated 19 politicians and public figures, including acting Donetsk administration head Alexey Kulemzin and acting Yasinovataya administration head Oleg Morgun. Crimean Cossack Society chieftain Vadim Ilovichenko was decorated with the badge For Services to the Republic.
The ceremony was followed by a concert of Donbass performance groups.
DPR celebrates Republic Day on 11 May. It commemorates the referendum held three years ago, when residents of Ukraine’s Donetsk Region voted for DPR state sovereignty.*jk