President: 'We celebrate Kupalle in the Year of the Belarusian Woman'

President: "We celebrate Kupalle in the Year of the Belarusian Woman. It is no coincidence that the Kupalle goddess became the symbol of the holiday. Our ancestors believed that she protects crops, fills herbs with life-giving strength, guards the family hearth, and cares for children and mothers. I wish that our entire world, so fragile as we see it, would be wrapped in her veil. May love and prosperity reign in every family. May we meet here in Alexandria next year and together embark on a new journey into the soul of the Slavic people — mysterious, yet invariably broad, sincere, and compassionate."