Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska has a message for the World

Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska has written an open letter to the first ladies of the World. She recalled the time when they held the Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen for the first time through a post on Instagram.

The conference was held at the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, a monument of Ukrainian architecture of the 11th century and a famous tourist spot of the capital.

Zelenska told her 2.6 million followers that she was apprehensive about the initiative because it was the first attempt to create a club of like-minded first couples who want to unite and change the world for the better together. But it all worked out perfectly – at the end of the Summit, there was a declaration to create a new platform for international cooperation among the world’s First Ladies and Gentlemen.

“Another outcome of the Summit was a collaborative statement: we agreed to take care of women and children in armed conflict areas. It seems that we forefelt what was about to happen…” she continued, referring to the grim situation in Ukraine at present.

Zelenska wrote that despite the distance she feels closer to the rest of the world than ever when people ask her “What else can we do for Ukraine?”. “After all, you know that while Ukraine is now defending itself, it is also protecting the peace of the whole world, keeping the war away from you at the doorstep of Europe.”

Zelenska further informed that over three million Ukrainians have been forced to flee and that they have already arrived in other countries. These are women and children whose husbands and parents made a conscious decision to stay in Ukraine to fight.

“They have lost their homes, they have seen bomb shelters and death, they barely get any sleep at night worrying about loved ones and their future as a whole. Please keep them warm. And I’m not just talking about the roof over their heads and food – it’s about adaptation – help them find work and provide education to their children,” she went on about how the world can help Ukrainian refugees.

She also requested that they get access to medical services and, if necessary, attend language courses in their countries. “Let them become your citizens temporarily – temporarily because they will definitely return. They will come back to Ukraine with your warmth in their hearts,” wrote Zelenska.

Zelenska further recalled horrifying situations where a family couldn’t reach the rescue buses and were brutally shot just a few meters away from them. “Mom, two children, and even dogs… Devastated father did not find anyone alive,” she said.

Requesting safe humanitarian corridors for people without being fired at, she also asked UNICEF, Red Cross, and OSCE to step in and help create such corridors.

The first lady informed that since the beginning of the war 4,300 children have been born who never saw safe skies and that around 80,000 Ukrainian women who will become mothers in the next few months have the right not to be startled by explosions, hunger or to live in fear.

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