DefMin Ciuca says we owe every day we live in peace to those who fell in past wars

Every day we live in peace, in freedom, as a nation in control of our own destiny is because of those who fell in the wars of the past or on missions carried out today in the warzones or on the national soil, Defence Minister Nicolae Ciuca said Thursday in a Heroes Day message.

"We have a duty of honour to remember all these brave Romanians not only on the occasion of events that mark the great historical moments or on the set holidays, but we must always be grateful for their sacrifice. We owe respect and gratitude to the WWII veterans and the veterans of today's war zones alike, to the wounded, as well as to the families of those who fell heroically on duty," Ciuca wrote in a Facebook post.

He mentioned that, although the measures to combat the novel coronavirus do not allow the organisation of ceremonies that the heroes deserve in abundance this year, the tradition will not be interrupted.

"Every year on this day, the soldiers of the Romanian Army bring light and flowers to the graves and monuments of those who are no more, so that we and those who come after us can carry on the existence of the Romanian nation. We will light candles of gratitude at the icons in our homes and say a prayer in the memory of those who laid their lives at the foundation of our nation. We will pray for the rest of the souls of those who have fulfilled their oath of allegiance to the country on the battlefields."

Ciuca added that this year marks a century since the official creation in Romania of the Heroes' Day on the day of the Ascension of Jesus. On this day, in all the Romanian Christian Orthodox churches in the country and abroad all the fallen Romanian heroes along centuries, on all the battlefields for faith, justice, and freedom and for the defence of the country and the integrity of the nation are commemorated.