At the National Military Memorial Cemetery in the Kyiv region, on May 25, the remains of the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, Colonel of the Army of the Ukrainian People's Republic, Andriy Melnyk, and his wife, Sofia Fedak-Melnyk, were reburied. This is reported by Suspilne.

The reburial ceremony was attended by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, Head of the Office of the President Kyrylo Budanov, his deputy Iryna Vereshchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk, Minister of Veterans Affairs Nataliia Kalmykova, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Andriy Sybiha. The third President of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko was also present at the procession.

Among the participants was Andriy Romaniuk, a descendant of the first leader of the OUN, Yevhen Konovalets. Since Andriy Melnyk and Yevhen Konovalets were married to the sisters Sofia and Olha Fedak, all their descendants are relatives. Andriy Romaniuk shared that he learned about his ancestry through studying archival records.

President's Speech and Politicians' Statements

During his speech, Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that the return of the Melnyks' remains passed through Zakarpattia and half of the country, and along this path, there was no discord that had often brought Ukraine down before.

The Head of State also announced that work on creating a Pantheon of prominent Ukrainians began even before the full-scale invasion, in collaboration with the current head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha. Now, this process is ongoing with the participation of the Office of the President, its head Kyrylo Budanov, and the Cabinet of Ministers. According to the President, in this way, the state fills the word 'respect' with great meaning, which should be fully expressed towards Ukrainian heroes.

Former Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance (2014-2019) and People's Deputy from "European Solidarity" Volodymyr Viatrovych noted on his Facebook page that the return of Andriy Melnyk to Ukraine is another step towards the state becoming worthy of the memory of those who fought for it.

Development of the Pantheon of Prominent Ukrainians Initiative

As explained in a commentary to the media by NZL Ivan Stychynskyi, an employee of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance (UINP), the Pantheon of Prominent Ukrainians and the Memorial of Ukrainian Heroes are two different projects. The Pantheon is an initiative aimed specifically at reburying prominent Ukrainian figures who are currently buried outside the country.

At the end of March, specifically on March 28, the Head of the Office of the President, Kyrylo Budanov, instructed to develop ideas for the creation of the Pantheon of Prominent Ukrainians. The thematic meeting was attended by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk, Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Iryna Vereshchuk, People's Deputies, scholars, representatives of the public, and the Institute of National Remembrance.

According to Budanov, the National Military Memorial Cemetery (NMMC) should play an important role in the reburial process. At the same time, in response to an NZL inquiry, representatives of the NMMC reported that as of March 30, they had not received an official directive regarding the development of ideas for the Pantheon's creation and had not participated in the aforementioned meeting on March 28.

Currently, Ukrainian diplomatic missions have already identified the burial sites of 98 prominent Ukrainians in 21 countries. Among the discovered graves are the resting places of political, military, cultural, and public figures of the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR), the West Ukrainian People's Republic (ZUNR), OUN-UPA, the government of the UNR in exile, and participants of the national liberation struggles.

History of the Establishment of Memorial Sites in Ukraine

The idea of establishing a special place for the burial of prominent figures has been discussed in Ukraine for many years:

• 2015: By order of the then President Petro Poroshenko, an Organizational Committee was established to oversee the creation of the Memorial of Ukrainian Heroes.
• 2020: The current President Volodymyr Zelenskyy adopted amendments to this order, expanding its scope to honor the memory of soldiers who died in the struggle against Russian aggression and Ukrainian fighters for independence in the 20th century.
• 2023: Military medic and Kyiv City Council deputy Alina Mykhailova registered a petition for the creation of a Pantheon at Askold's Grave in Kyiv. The document proposed making this place a resting point for leaders of liberation struggles of all times, military commanders, and prominent individuals, including the Heroes of Kruty, Heroes of Kholodnyi Yar, UPA soldiers, Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred, "Cyborgs," and Heroes of Ukraine in the current Russian-Ukrainian war.

Alina Mykhailova's petition gathered the required 25,000 votes in three days. Responding to the appeal, the President stated that the Ministry of Culture, together with the UINP, is working on a project for the Memorial of Heroes. At the same time, in 2023, UINP employee Ivan Stychynskyi noted in a commentary for NZL that the Institute considered it appropriate to place such a memorial object in the territory near the Arch of Freedom of the Ukrainian People or near the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in the Second World War.

Creation of a Pantheon in the Center of Kyiv

The reburial of Andriy Melnyk and his wife at the National Military Memorial Cemetery is the initial stage of a larger state initiative. As reported in a commentary to hromadske, historian and People's Deputy Volodymyr Viatrovych, another reburial will take place later – this time within the territory of the National Pantheon of Heroes, which is to be established directly in the center of Kyiv.

According to him, it concerns several dozen prominent figures of Ukrainian history, among whom, in addition to Andriy Melnyk, Yevhen Konovalets was also mentioned, whose remains are to be finally transferred to the future Pantheon.

Volodymyr Viatrovych noted that a "very worthy place" is currently being considered for the arrangement of the Pantheon, which is not yet being announced.

It is expected that this object will become a place of international protocol, which will be visited by foreign delegations and where solemn events of the highest state level will take place. The historian emphasized that a large number of burials of Ukrainian military men, politicians, and cultural figures remain abroad, which often disappear due to the death of guardians or the collapse of public organizations, so the state must systematically take over this initiative.

A circle of involved experts is currently working on the implementation of the project at the current meetings. Commenting on criticism on social media regarding the high cost and alleged inappropriateness of such steps during a full-scale war, Viatrovych, who has been working on the issue of transferring remains for over 25 years, noted that such accusations are a standard way of discrediting measures aimed at strengthening Ukrainian identity.