Olena Zelenska for The Telegraph: ‘Children are the first victims of any war or any military conflict’

Olena Zelenska gave an extensive interview to The Telegraph in which she spoke about the psychological pressure she faces daily, the initiatives she has launched and her role as First Lady of Ukraine in the face of a full-scale Russian invasion.

Mrs Zelenska began the interview by talking about the Summit’s First Ladies and Gentlemen Global Platform. She spoke about the idea of the platform as a place to combine the resources of spouses of first heads of state and the initiative’s focus on practical results. She gave an example of the second and third Summits of First Ladies and Gentlemen in 2022 and 2023.

The second Summit of First Ladies raised $6.4 million for 92 ambulances for Ukrainians, and the third Summit launched an international medical partnership that has already resulted in 48 memoranda of cooperation between Ukrainian and global medical institutions (as of the beginning of August 2024).

Olena Zelenska also spoke about the fourth Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen to be held on 12 September 2024 in Kyiv, dedicated to the topic ‘Protecting Childhood: Ensuring a Safe Future’. The First Lady emphasised that child safety is equally important for everyone and that the approach to this issue will be multidimensional, addressing such topics as child safety in the family, child safety at school, child safety in cyberspace and child safety during the war.

‘Unfortunately, we understand that children are the first victims of any war or military conflict. The militarisation of children, abductions, deaths of children, problems with children not having access to medical care and education – all this concerns children not only in Ukraine,’ – Olena Zelenska said.

Listen to the full interview and read the text on The Telegraph website.