SIMFEROPOL, May 8 (RIA Novosti) - Ukrainian activists in the Crimean capital of Simferopol have made the world's biggest St. George ribbon, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Friday.

The ribbon is 3.5 meters wide and 50 meters long and is made from one piece of fabric.

"We wanted our ribbon to not be different in anything but size from those our activists hand passersby," one organizer, local MP from pro-Russian Party of Regions, Denis Gorkov, said.

Representatives of the Ukrainian Records Book and the Guinness Book of Records measured the ribbon to submit it later as a Ukrainian and world record.

In Russia, the St. George ribbon campaign is being held for a fifth year. It was started by RIA Novosti and the Student Community youth organization. More than 45 million ribbons have been distributed throughout the world, including in Ukraine, Estonia, Germany, Britain, the United States and China.

The St. George Ribbon campaign has become a symbol of Russia's sacrifices during WWII. On the eve of Victory Day, May 9, people attach ribbons with black and orange stripes to their car antennas, jackets, backpacks, or hospital beds for veterans. Some people keep the ribbon for the entire year.

Orange and black are the traditional colors of Soviet and Russian awards for military achievements. The black and orange stripes symbolize smoke and fire.