The Ukrainian First Lady has urged the British people not to forget about the suffering in Ukraine caused by the Russian invasion over Christmas. Olena Zelenska was talking ahead of a planned speech to MPs and peers on Tuesday.
She is visiting London a few days after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak met Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv. She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: "We do hope that the approaching season of Christmas doesn’t make you forget about our tragedy and get used to our suffering."
Ms Zelenska praised the UK’s vocal support for the Ukrainian resistance efforts against Vladimir Putin’s forces, as the country braces for winter. “We feel that by the aid for our forcefully displaced people, by the political and financial assistance and by humanitarian aid we are receiving from the British," she said.
“Ukrainians are very tired of this war, but we have no choice in the matter. We are fighting for our very lives.
"The British public do have a choice. They can get used to our tragedy, concentrate on their own important things in life.
"My message for the British is as follows: It’s not just a war for our freedom and our lives. This is the war of opposing world views, the war for the values. It’s important that these are preserved.
"This is a fight for the truth and human values. We do hope that the approaching season of Christmas doesn’t make you forget about our tragedy and get used to our suffering.”
On Monday, Ms Zelenska visited Downing Street and met the prime minister’s wife, Akshata Murty.
Ukraine will be top of the agenda once again when Foreign Secretary James Cleverly travels to Romania this week for a meeting of Nato allies. The gathering of Nato foreign ministers in Bucharest is expected to discuss on how to continue support for Ukraine throughout the cold winter months.
