A
Ukrainian couple tied the knot on the front line. The couple has been together
for 22 years and has joined the fight against Russian forces, who invaded the
country last month.

Also Read: Ukraine crisis: 406 civilians killed, 801 injured amid Russian attack, says UN

Lesia
Ivashchenko left her job when the war with Russia started on February 24 and
joined territorial defence forces to defend her district on the outskirts of
Kyiv.

She
had not seen her partner Valerii Fylymonov since the beginning of the Russian
invasion until Sunday when the pair officially tied the knot.

Also Read: Ukraine blocking humanitarian corridors: Russia accuses Kyiv of war crime

“It
is very sad that this (the Russian invasion) happened to us, that our family
cannot be together,” she said after the wedding ceremony that was
organised right on the checkpoint in Kyiv.

“I’m
happy that we are alive, that this day started, that my husband is alive, and
he is with me. We decided who knows what will happen tomorrow. We should get
married in front of the state, in front of God. And we have an adult daughter,
and I think she’s happy that we finally did it,” she added.

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“I
expected to have a very modest ceremony. I thought we’ll just will say ‘yes’ to
each other. It was a surprise from my brothers in arms and our commanders that
they decided to set it (the marriage ceremony) up to show that, despite
everything, we believe in the future and life is going on. We are determined to
push back the enemy and take back our lands and win,” she further added.

The
couple was congratulated by Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

Also Read: In Pics | Death, prayer, and a wedding in Ukraine amid Russian assault

Meanwhile,
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that the ongoing resistance was putting
Ukrainian statehood in jeopardy and likened the West’s sanctions on Russia to
“declaring war”.

With
the Kremlin’s rhetoric growing fiercer Russian, troops continued to shell
encircled cities and the number of Ukrainians forced from their country grew to
1.4 million.

Also Read: Russia ready to stop war against Ukraine ‘in a moment’ if demands are met: Kremlin

Russia, meanwhile, on Monday said that it would stop the war against Ukraine if the country
accepts its demands. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, said Ukraine have
to cease military action, change its constitution to enshrine neutrality,
acknowledge Crimea as Russian territory and recognise the separatist republics
of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent territories. If these demands are met by
Kyiv, the war will end ‘in a moment’.