1000 Flags to Save Lives: Ukraine WOW and Come Back Alive, with the Support of the Verkhovna Rada, Recreate the Legendary Flag of Independence

35 years ago, a group of Members of Parliament brought a flag into the Verkhovna Rada chamber. Unusual in its color and size, it became a key witness to the proclamation of Ukraine’s independence. In August 2026, the NGO Ukraine WOW, together with the Come Back Alive Foundation and with the support of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, have recreated 1,000 copies of this flag,  so that it can once again unite people while saving lives.

Today, it is hard to imagine that during Soviet times, people were persecuted by the KGB for displaying the Ukrainian flag. Finding fabric in the required colors was almost impossible, as Soviet security services had removed it from shops. That is why the flag secretly sewn by activists of the People’s Movement of Ukraine was light blue rather than dark blue, and measured 7.34 meters in length — as much fabric as they were able to find. On August 24, 1991, it reached the parliament building. At 9:04 p.m., a group of Members of Parliament led by Viacheslav Chornovil and Ivan Zayets brought the flag into the chamber of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. The documentary footage of this event  is familiar to every Ukrainian.

“I remember that day down to the smallest detail,” says Ivan Zayets. “We could hear thousands of voices chanting beneath the Parliament: ‘In-de-pen-dence, in-de-pen-dence!’ Initially, at the suggestion of Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Leonid Kravchuk, a flag that had been on a tank during the coup in Moscow was supposed to be brought into the parliamentary chamber. But when I went out to the square in front of Parliament, it was nowhere to be seen among the sea of blue-and-yellow flags. I was drawn to a large light-blue-and-yellow flag that people had been holding in their hands all day. They hoped to see it flying above the dome of the Parliament building as a herald of the emergence of a new Ukrainian state. I already had some experience — albeit an unsuccessful one — of bringing a blue-and-yellow flag into the chamber on October 1, 1990, one day before the students began their hunger strike. So we took this large light-blue-and-yellow flag and carried it into the chamber. Afterwards, we sang ‘Oi u Luzi Chervona Kalyna.’

I felt immense pride because I had been given the opportunity to be among the founders of the state. Such an opportunity probably comes once in a thousand years. And we did not let it slip away. It was a great happiness to become a standard-bearer of this state. We are a fortunate generation because we can see the result of our work and our service to the people: an independent Ukrainian state — Ukraine.”

In 2026, Ukraine WOW and the Come Back Alive Foundation, with the support of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, have recreated the flag in 1,000 copies of the same color and size. Each flag has its own number and comes with a postcard personally signed by Ivan Zayets, one of the founding figures of the modern Ukrainian state. The flag can be received in exchange for a charitable donation of UAH 40,000: https://ukrainewow.org/en/prapor-nezalezhnosti. All funds will go toward the purchase of ground-based robotic systems for the Defense Forces of Ukraine.

“On August 24, 1991, the blue-and-yellow flag was solemnly brought into the Verkhovna Rada. And on February 24, 2022, unfortunately, for the first time in our modern history, it had to be evacuated from the parliament,” says Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. “Until the beginning of April 2022, it was in my backpack and remained with us until Russian forces were pushed back beyond the borders of the Kyiv region. The flag then returned to its prominent place in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. And it will remain there forever. The Flag of Independence is undoubtedly one of the most important symbols of our state. And I am glad that thanks to this project, it can serve another important purpose — saving the lives of our soldiers on the frontline and bringing people together through their love for Ukraine.”

“It is deeply symbolic that an exact replica of the flag that witnessed the birth of an independent Ukraine 35 years ago will now help those who defend it. Some of our colleagues are among Ukraine’s defenders today. That is why this project has a special meaning for us. It is important for us to support an initiative that connects our history with today’s struggle for Ukraine,” said Viacheslav Shtuchnyi, Head of the Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.

“We wanted to recreate the flag that is preserved in the Ukrainian parliament today. And we were deeply moved when we measured it: 7 meters, 34 centimeters long. This unusual size reminds us how difficult it was not only to sew the flag, but even to find fabric of the right color. For 1,000 flags, we needed 26 kilometers of fabric and more than 2,000 hours of work. 4 people worked on each copy. And Ivan Zayets, a living legend, personally signed a postcard for each one. We believe that these 1,000 flags will give people some of the faith and strength they need to keep moving forward. If Ukrainians were able to defeat an evil empire and gain independence in 1991, when no one in the world believed it was possible, then we will also prevail today. We are sincerely grateful to everyone who believed in this idea and helped make it happen: Accordbank, Nova Poshta, Taras Panasenko and Anatolii Reder,” — comment Ukraine WOW Co-Founders, Yaroslavа Gres and Julia Solovey.

The Come Back Alive Foundation will direct 100% of the charitable contributions toward the purchase of terrestrial robotic systems for the Defense Forces of Ukraine. These systems will be used to evacuate wounded soldiers and deliver essential supplies,  including medicines, food and ammunition, to the most dangerous areas of the frontline.

“Ground robotic systems perform some of the most dangerous tasks instead of soldiers, medics and drivers. For example, one of these systems can transport up to 500 kilograms of cargo in 2 hours without putting  lives at risk;  25 people would be needed to carry the same load, and they would have to move through an area exposed to FPV drones, while taking significantly more time. That is why the frontline’s need for these systems is extremely high today, and providing the military with them and training operators are among the priority areas of work for the Come Back Alive Foundation,” says Oleg Karpenko, Deputy Director of the Come Back Alive Foundation.

Join the project: https://ukrainewow.org/en/prapor-nezalezhnosti