Ukraine postage stamps dedicated to AFU and ATO fighters

Since 2014, Ukraine has become a country at war. And since 2022, Ukraine's Armed Forces have become one of the leading military specialists in the modern world. The first phase of re-equipping and reaching new standards was the eight-year ATO period. The second stage shocked the whole modern world, because during the first 3 months of a full-scale invasion by an aggressor country, Ukraine was able to repel the enemy. And after another 3 months, it was able to master the latest weapons and modern methods of warfare extremely quickly. The first results were the return of the occupied lands. To this day, there is no intention of stopping and the fight will continue until victory is achieved.

War in modern philately

Ukrainian philately is young enough, but already mature. The year of the beginning can be considered 1918, and it is already more than 100 years of history. Cutting off the Soviet influence on the Ukrainian vision, an outstanding period is the beginning of stamp printing in the independent country since 1992. The first stamps printed were dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the Cossacks.

Ukraine has not stopped fighting for its independence, for after 30 years of independent existence it was caught in the full sense of war. The first issues of violation of the country's territorial integrity arose in 2014 and lasted 8 years without reaching a diplomatic solution to the conflict.

Philately is closely intertwined with history and every prominent event of a positive or extremely negative nature finds its way onto the pages of stamps. This includes anniversaries, remarkable events, famous people, objects of pride and the like. In the category of militarism, the events of 2014 and the historical journey of the ATO of 8 years have not gone unnoticed.

A new breath of Ukrainian philately was provided by the year 2022. In an extremely difficult time, Ukrposhta decided to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine and every Ukrainian who joined the struggle. Quite outstanding was the issue of the first stamp during the martial law period. And the second stamp was as a confirmation of the indestructibility of the Ukrainian people with resolute intentions. As a consequence, contrary to the thematic plan drawn up in 2021, Ukrposhta continued to issue pages of the present.

envelope of the first day with a postage stamp of the cyborgs of the Donetsk airport

The period of 8-year misunderstanding

Having faced the revolution that emerged in 2013-2014 against a backdrop of political confrontation, there are many different opinions and attitudes towards the ATO until today. More than one author's book has been published and dozens of articles have been written on the topic. However, even with the change of political power, the issue is stuck as an unresolved and frozen conflict.

However, the historical moment did not escape the pages of philately. The first stamp was issued immediately in 2014. A total of four stamps were issued during the ATO and then the Joint Forces Operation. All of them are dedicated to Ukrainian soldiers who took part in the special operation.

To honor! To glory! For the people!

There was much discussion among connoisseurs as to what the stamp should be. However, regardless of whether or not it unlocked the potential and significance of the events in Ukraine, it made it into the philatelists' collection. The stamp was issued in increased edition of 183 thousand copies.

On the stamp there is a portrait of the Ukrainian soldier with the slogan "For the honor! For glory! For the people!". On the margin of the stamp sheet there is an inscription "For Ukraine! For its freedom!". The portrait of Oleksiy Shynalskyi created by artist Volodymyr Taran embodies all the defenders who took part in the ATO.

The call sign "Frenchman" participated in the battles for the Savur-Mohyla and directly for Donetsk airport. He is considered one of the best sappers in Ukraine. During combat missions he heroically carried out mines without any hesitation to save the lives of his fellow soldiers. Under enemy fire he demined bridges and crossings. His mines stopped the movement of more than one column of equipment in the direction of Mariupol.

Defenders of Ukraine. Brand and Leshiy

The project of creating the patriotic issue emerged back in 2017 and was to be called Faces of the Ukrainian Army. In fact, the stamp was introduced in 2018 with a standard circulation of 130,000. The information with portraits of the military was selected based on analysis of news websites and social media. The choice was left to the photos taken by Mykhailo Mygovych, who took pictures in the war zone.

The example of the previous stamp is not based on an individual personality, but on a prototype of a Ukrainian fighter. The sheet consists of two different stamps depicting fighters of the Azov battalion.

Cyborgs. They made it! The concrete failed!

The stamp dedicated to the events at the Donetsk airport was issued to the 5th anniversary of the completion of its defense with a regular circulation of 130 thousand. The topic of cyborgs has gained considerable publicity by this time, several author's books have been published.

Unlike the previous ATO stamps, this series is dedicated to the memory of the soldiers who defended Donetsk airport for 242 days. The stamp depicts the image of a Ukrainian soldier on a black background. Behind him is the airport control tower, which is symbolically made in red. The Ukrainian flag is depicted in the breast part of the soldier and on the top of the tower.

Armed Forces of Ukraine Land Forces

The last stamp in this period was issued in 2021. It is dedicated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The sheet has 8 different stamps depicting the land forces, with a circulation of 20,000 copies. The issue was supported by the Ministry of Defense. The artist, who worked on the images of soldiers - Olexiy Bondarenko.

Initially, Ukrposhta planned to release it on 23 February, but the Defence Ministry protested, as this date corresponds to the creation of the Red Army and has not been celebrated in Ukraine since 2014. The issue was later postponed to 14 March.

Time for a full-scale invasion

No one was prepared for what happened in February. At first it seemed like a big misunderstanding, but it didn't take long to come to their senses and realise the reality. The result was the unity of the Ukrainian people and their willingness to work together to defend Ukraine. Ukrposhta was no exception, as it did not stop its work and did everything possible to ensure that Ukrainian soldiers had support and supplies in every location.

«The Russian warship, go...!»

Ukrposhta joined the support of the Armed Forces and on March 1 announced a competition to create a sketch for the stamp. It was an announcement of the first stamp issue during martial law. Many professional illustrators took part. Among 500 proposals, 20 were selected, after which a popular vote was held on the pages of the social network Facebook. The winner was the work of Crimean artist Borys Grokh.

The stamp was issued on April 12 with a record circulation of 1 million in two denominations. The result was the purchase of 500 thousand in the first 5 days and the end of the sale on April 20.

"Russian warship... That' s all!!»

After a wide resonance with the issue of the first stamp, something happened that every Ukrainian dreamed of - on 14 April the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet of the aggressor country sank. This increased interest in the stamp, so Ukrposhta decided to issue a stamp mentioning the event. The stamp was issued on 23 May with a circulation of 5 million, 2 of which were sold in 2 days.

«Glory to the Armed Forces of Ukraine!»

On the occasion of the Day of Defenders of Ukraine, a charity stamp with a circulation of 1 million copies was issued. The sheet of stamps has 6 different stamps depicting different branches of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The issue was carried out on the day of the holiday.

The envelope of the first day with the stamp Kherson is Ukraine