President Ilham Aliyev congratulates Zelenskyy on Ukraine’s Independence Day

On 24 August 2026, Ukraine marked its 35th Independence Day with messages and visits from abroad. President Ilham Aliyev sent a congratulatory letter to Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Nausėda told Kyiv that only victory can bring peace to Europe, and the Ukrainian president awarded Nausėda the Order of Liberty in Kyiv. Zelenskyy called for global support on the day. Prime Minister Burnham visited Kyiv, and Russia complained that Britain was 'adding fuel to the fire'.