President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte visited a medical facility in Odessa where Ukrainian defenders are recovering from injuries.
The leaders spoke with the soldiers and medical staff about the conditions of treatment. The wounded servicemen and women are receiving all necessary assistance after sustaining injuries while carrying out combat missions in Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia regions, and even in Russia’s Kursk region.
Zelensky thanked them for their service and defense of Ukraine, wished them a speedy recovery, and awarded them with the Orders "For Courage" of the 2nd and 3rd class.
He also expressed gratitude to the combat medics and presented them with the Orders of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, Princess Olga (3rd class), Danylo Halytskyi, and the medal "For Military Service to Ukraine." These medics not only work daily in the facility but have also saved the lives of Ukrainian soldiers under artillery and missile fire in Kherson, Kharkiv, and Mykolaiv regions — providing aid, evacuation, and performing surgeries.
"You are incredibly important people to us. Thank you for preserving lives. Please take care of yourselves. For every minute, every surgery, every effort since the war began — Ukraine is grateful," the President said.
Mark Rutte also praised the courage of Ukrainian doctors and their role in saving lives:
"You dedicate your time, your days, weeks, and years to this. And we see it. It’s extremely important. This is exactly what sets Ukraine apart from Russia — the difference between dictatorship and democracy," the NATO Secretary General emphasized.
