The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry held an iftar attended by diplomats and leaders of the Crimean Tatar people

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (MFA) hosted an iftar, a traditional dinner after sunset during the holy month of Ramadan for Muslims. The event took place on Friday, 6 March, with the participation of diplomats, leaders of the Crimean Tatar people and representatives of the Muslim community.

This was reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.

The guests were welcomed by Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga. The event was attended by the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Rustem Umerov, Crimean Tatar leaders Mustafa Dzhemilev and Refat Chubarov, Permanent Representative of the President of Ukraine in Crimea Olga Kuryško, Head of the State Service for Ethnic Policy and Freedom of Conscience Viktor Yelensky, singer Jamala, spiritual leaders of the Muslim community and members of parliament.

Representatives of the diplomatic corps also joined the iftar, including the ambassadors of Azerbaijan, Albania, Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Pakistan, Palestine, South Africa, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, the chargé d'affaires of Sudan, and a representative of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Ukraine.

This is the second year in a row that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has held an iftar at the state level as part of an initiative by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

During his speech, Andriy Sibiga noted that this year's Ramadan is taking place during a difficult period for international security, particularly in the Middle East region. He stressed that Ukraine is closely monitoring developments and expresses solidarity with states facing aggression from the Iranian regime.

In this context, the minister expressed support for Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and expressed hope that the people of Iran will be able to live in freedom and democratic conditions in the future.

Separately, the Foreign Minister thanked Ukrainian Muslim soldiers who defend the state.

"We may have different traditions, religions and cultural experiences, but we are united by common values and respect for human dignity. That is why we are striving together for a just and dignified peace," the minister said.

The participants of the event also observed a minute of silence in memory of the Ukrainian defenders who died in the struggle for the independence of the state.

At the end, Andriy Sibiga thanked the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, the team of the Crimean Tatar restaurant Musafir, and representatives of the Crimean Tatar community for their support and co-organisation of the event.