On June 26, Ukraine and Ukrainian Crimean Tatar communities worldwide traditionally celebrate the Crimean Tatar Flag Day.
The Crimean Tatars’ national flag, Kök Bayraq, was authorized during the First Kurultai in 1917, following the February Revolution. The origins of this blue flag, which features a yellow coat of arms (tamga) in the upper left corner, go back to the creation of the Crimean Khanate. The flag was outlawed during the Soviet occupation and reinstated on the eve of the restoration of Ukraine’s independence in June 1991.
Today, Kök Bayraq is not just a national symbol. It is a representation of the protracted fight for truth and freedom. It represents the Crimean Tatar people’s resistance against Russia’s eight-year occupation, which is currently escalating as Ukrainian soldiers get closer to the occupied peninsula’s boundaries. Finally, it is a representation of the thousands of Crimean Tatar volunteers serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces to combat Russian invasion.
United by common colors, history and, fight for freedom and independence of Ukraine, the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar communities around the world are celebrating Flag Day and hoping for a speedy victory and the day when the blue and yellow flags will fly over the free Ukrainian Crimea again.
#CrimeaisUkraine! Qırım – bu, Ukraina!
