It has always stayed in Ukraine, Olena Selenskawife of the President Volodymyr. Since then, his country found the troops of To fly behind the front door. She chose to stay to help deal with the humanitarian crisis, but she had to give up her husband, who saw very little for two and a half months. In fact, just like him, Olena has become a target for the Russians. However, in recent days, First Lady Rada TV gave a rare televised interview, and by her side was the President of Ukraine. “No one takes my husband from me, not even the war – he declared – my place remains firmly beside him, even in such a difficult moment.”
Can Ukraine win? War in a “swamp” according to analysts, the 5 most favorable scenarios in Kyiv
Olena Zelenska, the first lady of steel
It is the second time since the war that the two have appeared together. The first a few days ago, when Olena and her husband in mourning clothes attended the funeral of the first President of Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk in Kyiv. Before that, Zelenska stayed in a secret place for a long time for security reasons, because in the first days of the invasion her husband was the number one target of Moscow and her family was number two.
THE GREEN SHIRT
In the interview, Zelensky and his wife sit with two Ukrainian journalists around a round table set with cups, a ceramic teapot and biscuits for afternoon tea. The President wears the usual military uniform, his wife a beige jacket and a military green shirt. “Our family is destroyed, like every Ukrainian family – explains the first lady – but no one takes my husband away from me, not even the war,” she replies firmly to the journalist, who asks her if the war somehow took him away. Although he then adds: “But yes, he lives for his work and we hardly ever see him. We haven’t seen him at all for two and a half months. We just spoke on the phone,” explained Olena, 44, a mother of two, ages 17 and 9.
So thanks to television, which gives them another opportunity. “I’m very grateful for this opportunity because this interview allows us to spend time together,” she says, smiling and looking at her husband, who in turn laughs and adds: “Yes, a date on TV … Thank you”. Almost three months have passed since the day war broke out, but Zelenska is reliving it as if it were yesterday: «I remember waking up outside with strange noises, as probably everyone did. It was dark, almost night, and I saw that Volodymyr was not near me. I went into the next room and he was already wearing a suit but no tie. I asked him, “What’s going on?” And he replied: “It has begun”. I can’t describe the emotions, the fear, the amazement. He told me that and left. After that – he concludes – we haven’t seen each other for a long time ».
In the months that followed, Olena, a screenwriter originally from Kryvyi Rih, like Volodymyr, whom she met in college – she’s studying architecture, he reads – and then married in 2003, didn’t appear much in public ( one of the few appearances, the surprise meeting with US President Jill Biden’s wife in a school in Ukraine), but he continued his commitment with appeals and interviews, especially for injured, sick and refugee Ukrainian children.
HELP
Despite studying architecture, Zelenska chose to be a screenwriter and continued to work after her husband’s election as president to balance her shifts with her status as first lady in the president’s office. “It’s a purely representative role, you don’t get paid, so you can combine two jobs,” he said in another interview.
Although the lady from Kyiv did not like attention, she was able to use her visibility on important social issues: nutrition and equal opportunities, trying to be a mediator between people and institutions. He recently published an exciting video with children as protagonists. He tells of the many Ukrainians who have fled to Poland and dream of returning to their country: “We will return – assured the First Lady – because there is nothing better than going home.”
© REPRODUCTION RESERVED