Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proven to be a true statesman over the last week amid the Russian invasion of his country.
Once an actor and comedian, Zelenskyy is now facing one of the biggest challenges of his career and lifetime, calling himself Russia's ‘target number one’ and his family, ‘number two’.
By this, he meant his children, 17-year-old Aleksandra and nine-year-old Kiril, as well as his wife, who has carved out a platform of her own.
Who is Ukraine’s First Lady?
Zelenskyy is married to Olena Zelenska, a 44-year-old screenwriter who was once a classmate of her spouse.
She is considered one of Ukraine’s most influential women aside from her role as the wife of the president.
In 2019, Zelenska got the ball rolling on Ukraine’s accession to the Biarritz Partnership, the G7 international initiative on gender equality, during a speech at the third Ukrainian Women’s Congress.
She has also made significant contributions for Ukrainian culture and language, encouraging it to spread across the world while campaigning for a barrier-free society, as well as leading a reform of the school nutrition system.
How did they meet?
Zelenska originally studied architecture at Kryvyi Rih National University, but decided to change her specialism to writing instead.
She met her future husband at university, when she was Olena Kiyashko. The pair had actually crossed paths at school and had mutual friends but it was not until later when Zelenskyy was a law student and budding comedian that they came together.
Move to politics
Though Zelenskyy had starred in a comedy skit about a spoof politician called Servant of the People, he had no prior experience or interest in making the career change.
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When he first told his wife about wanting to swap laughter for leadership, Zelenska was allegedly “aggressively opposed”. At that point in her life, she had hidden from the spotlight.
Despite this, she stayed by his side during photo ops and speeches during campaigning and canvassing.
Life as First Lady
While she is considered a first Lady of action, Zelenska is, like many first ladies, revered for her choice of fashion, and mainly uses her platform to showcase Ukrainian designers.
She has appeared on the cover of the Ukrainian edition of Vogue in the past, and in the article that accompanied the photos, she is quoted as saying: “I am a non-public person. But the new realities [being First Lady] require their own rules, and I'm trying to comply with them.”
She said: “I prefer staying backstage. My husband is always on the forefront, while I feel more comfortable in the shade.
“I am not the life of the party, I do not like to tell jokes. It's not in my character.
“But I found reasons for myself in favour of publicity. One of them is the opportunity to attract people's attention to important social issues.”
Even with her role as First Lady of Ukraine, she continues working with production company Studio Quarter 95 as a screenwriter.
Invasion of Ukraine
In recent days, Zelenska has taken to social media to share messages to Ukrainian people and the world alike.
On her most recent Instagram post, she shared a video how Ukraine looks now, with images and clips of conflict, people hiding in shelters and community efforts to fight back.
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She wrote in both Ukrainian and English: “This is how Ukraine looks right now. Here is a video for the world to see – we are at war.
“Because of Putin's attack, Ukrainians have to take their children to basements every night and fight the enemy beneath the walls of their homes. Ukraine is a peaceful country.
“We are against the war and did not attack first. But we are not going to give up. The whole world, look: we are fighting for peace in your countries as well.”
She also paid tribute to the “incredible” women who are the “face” of the country’s resistance in another post.
Zelenska and her family are in hiding, but it is believed that they are still somewhere in Ukraine.
