President Basescu on Flag Day: Romanians must duly honor national Tricolor

President Traian Basescu on Thursday delivered a message on the occasion of the National Flag Day, stating that the Romanians must revere and honor the Romanian Tricolor.

The head of the state shows that the National Flag, which is celebrated on June 26, is "a symbol of the Romanian people's battle for freedom, reminding us the duty falling on us to defend the unity, security and independence of Romania and to serve our homeland with devotion."

"Adopted as a symbol of the nation on the first day of the victory of the 1848 Revolution, the Tricolor made its way into the Romanians' conscience as the national flag. Important events and moments in our history, the Union of the Romanian Principalities on January 24, 1859, the Independence of the Romanian state in 1877, the Great Union of December 1, 1918, the battles fought in the two World Wars and many other endeavors having as a guiding ideal freedom and national unity have taken place under this national symbol. To the Romanian soldiers, the flag is the representation of honor, bravery and military glory. On the battlefield when acting in defence of the country, at training drills, on the missions in theaters of operations, the Tricolor has always accompanied the soldiers, conveying the desire of the Romanian nation to assert its full independence and sovereignty, to maintain relationships based on trust and mutual respect with all peoples of the world," reads President Basescu's message.

He points out that this symbol must be revered and honored by all Romanians.

"Our participation today in various events dedicated to the National Flag Day is an opportunity for me to tell all Romanians that they must revere and honor the Romanian Tricolor," President Basescu concludes...