The Central Bank of Ukraine launched a new currency note on Thursday to commemorate one year of Russia's invasion on the country. The Bank is planning to launch a series of notes depicting alleged war crimes by Russia and Ukraine's victory.
The one side of 20-hryvnia ($0.54) note depicts three soldiers raising the national flag while the other side features an image of two hands tied with tape, an apparent allusion to alleged war crimes Kyiv has accused Russian forces of committing in Ukraine, Reuters reported.
"To mark the anniversary of the war, we decided to launch a commemorative banknote which will depict on a small piece of paper a year of emotions, patterns, content and iconic things," Reuters quoted Andriy Pyshnyi, governor of the National Bank of Ukraine as saying.
Pyshnyi said that the new note contains innovative security features and it would have a circulation of 3,00,000. According to Ukraine's Central bank officials, it took about eight months to design and produce the note. The bank is planning a series of notes to provide a visual record of the war. The Bank is already planning new notes to commemorate Ukraine's victory and reconstruction.
Foreign aid from the West to Ukraine has improved its currency reserves. Ukraine's hard currency reserves have grown to nearly $30 billion, slightly higher than at the start of the war, Reuters reported.
"During this year, Ukrainians have realised their force, their significance, their ability not only to withstand but also to win, to win without forgiving a single military crime, a single ruined house," Reuters quoted Pyshnyi saying. He added, "This victory will be at a very high price but it will happen and it will be ours."