On 24 August 1991, the Supreme Council of Ukraine (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine) adopted the document to play the vital historic importance in the destiny of Ukraine – the Act of Declaration of Ukrainian Independence.
On 19 February 1992, Resolution “On State Emblem of Ukraine” was approved to entitle the Trident or Tryzub as the Small National Coat of Arms of Ukraine and as the main element of the Great National Coat of Arms of Ukraine.
Tryzub is one of the three state symbols of Ukraine along with the National Flag of Ukraine and the National Anthem of Ukraine.
The Small National Coat of Arms of Ukraine is the golden tryzub on the blue shield.
In 1996, the status of the Small National Coat of Arms is enshrined in the 20th Article of the Ukrainian Constitution, wherein it is referred as “The Princely State Symbol of Volodymyr the Great”.
Initially, as being adopted, Tryzub was considered the Small National Coat of Arms of Ukraine and the main element of the Great National Coat of Arms of Ukraine. Article 20 of the Constitution of Ukraine claims that “the Great National Coat of Arms of Ukraine shall be established incorporating the elements of the Small National Coat of Arms of Ukraine and the Coat of Arms of the Zaporizhia Host, and shall be approved by the law, adopted by at least two-thirds of the constitutional membership of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine”.
24 August 2021, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine supported the draft law on the Great National Coat of Arms of Ukraine in its first reading. According to the draft law, “The National Coat of Arms of Ukraine shall be the National Symbol of Ukraine, wherein the main element shall be the Princely State Symbol of Volodymyr the Great (the Small National Coat of Arms of Ukraine) of golden colour on a five-sided blue shield with the rounded lower angles with golden outline; over the shield there shall be the image of the crown of Yaroslav the Wise and a scarlet and gold tent in the form of the plant ornament; the shield is held by the lion (the Coat of Arms of the Halytsian-Volynian principality) on the left and by the warrior cossack with the gun (the Coat of Arms of the Zaporizhia Host) on the right; under the shield there shall be the ribbon of two equally sized horizontal stripes of blue and yellow, under the ribbon – two golden wheat spikes interwoven with the bunches of viburnum of the scarlet colour with stylised leaves of scarlet and golden. The images of the lion and the warrior cossack shall be depicted in golden colour with the elements of scarlet”.
In spite of several competitions for the draft of the Great National Coat of Arms have been held, none of the drafts have been approved.
The public desecration of the National Coat of Arms is punishable under articles 298, 338 and 296 (part one) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
