A Ukrainian flag will be hoisted in Bury tomorrow, Thursday, to mark the country’s annual independence day.

Councillors, including the borough mayor, are inviting people to a flag-raising ceremony at Bury Town Hall at 9.50am to celebrate the area's Ukrainian community.

The date marks the country becoming independent from the Soviet Union in 1991 when the declaration of independence was issued.

Organisers of the event say that the Ukrainian National Anthem will be sung at the ceremony, followed by a few speeches from dignitaries.

Afterwards, tea and coffee will be available in the mayor's parlour.

Almost 150 visas were issued in 2022 for Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion to stay with hosts in Bury under the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme.

Bury stood in solidarity with the people of Ukraine on the first anniversary of the Russian invasion in February this year when a Ukrainian flag was re-risen outside Bury Town Hall to allow a moment of reflection.

The aim of the ceremony was to allow people to remember all those impacted over the last year, whether in Ukraine or the borough.

Since then, the conflict has continued and Ukraine has sought to take the war into the heart of Russia.

Bury Times: Russia said Ukrainian drones were downed in Moscow and the region around the capital early on WednesdayRussia said Ukrainian drones were downed in Moscow and the region around the capital early on Wednesday (Image: AP)

Russia and Ukraine traded drone attacks early on Wednesday, officials said, with Kyiv apparently targeting Moscow again and the Kremlin’s forces launching another bombardment of Ukrainian grain storage depots in what have recently become signature tactics in the almost 18-month war.

A three-hour night-time Russian drone attack in Ukraine’s southern Odesa region on Tuesday caused a blaze at grain facilities, Odesa Regional Military Administration head Oleh Kiper wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

Ukrainian air defence systems downed nine Shahed drones, he said.

Russia zeroed in on Odesa last month, crippling significant parts of the port city’s grain facilities, days after President Vladimir Putin broke off Russia’s participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

That wartime deal had enabled Ukraine’s exports to reach many countries facing the threat of hunger.

Russian officials, meanwhile, claimed to have downed Ukrainian drones in Moscow and the surrounding region early on Wednesday, the defence ministry and the mayor said.

No casualties were reported in the drone attack, which has become almost a daily occurrence in the Russian capital.