When Volodymyr Zelensky allegedly received an offer to leave the country in the first days of the Russian invasion, his response was forceful: “I need ammunition, not transportation,” Ukraine’s president said in a video.
His wife, Olena Zelenska, and their two children, Sasha and Cyril, also decided to remain in the country.
And now that the president has expressed that his family, after him, has become Russia’s next target, the gaze has turned to the first lady, whose whereabouts are being kept secret for obvious security reasons.
From her refuge, Zelenska has harnessed her influence on social media to advance her country’s cause.
“Today I will not have panic or tears. I will be calm and confident. My children are looking at me. I will be with them. And next to my husband. And with you“he wrote last week.
She shared a new message addressed to the other first ladies, explaining what they can do “First ladies ask me these days how they can help Ukraine. My answer is: tell the world the truth!”
He also shared information for those who can provide humanitarian aid.
But what else is known about this 44-year-old woman, considered an influencer in her country, with more than two million followers on Instagram?
Surprise
Olena Zelenska grew up in Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine where her husband also grew up.
The two have known each other since college. She studied architecture and he studied law.
However, the two later changed course and pursued comedy.
She devoted herself in particular to writing screenplays, at the production company that Zelensky founded, Studio Kvartal 95.
They got married in 2003, after dating for eight years, and a year later, they had their first daughter. Their son was born in 2013.
Politics was not in Zelenska’s plans until, with more than 73% of the vote, her husband won a landslide victory in the Ukrainian presidential elections in April 2019.
Zelenska says that it was through social networks that she found out that her husband would run for office.
“How come you didn’t tell me?” she rebuked him. “I forgot,” was her reply.
But he says that when they had talked about it, she had been very supportive.
Behind the scenes
Although he prefers to keep a low profile, Zelenska harnesses the power of the networks to encourage her compatriots in the midst of the crisis and to get help to get ahead.
She was also chosen for her qualities as one of the 100 most influential Ukrainians in 2019 by Focus magazine, and has been on the cover of the local version of Vogue magazine, to which she gave an extensive report in 2019, where she talked about both her mission as first lady, as well as her lifestyle and the changes she had to face after assuming her new role in the political life of the country.
“I can’t say that publicity or communication with the press is stressful for me. But I prefer to stay behind the scenes. My husband is always up front, while I feel more comfortable in the shadows,” she said.
“I’m not the life of the party, I don’t like to tell jokes. It’s not in my character. But I found reasons for myself in favor of publicity. One of them is the opportunity to draw people’s attention to important social issues.”
Among the causes she has chosen to support are child nutrition, the Paralympics and the fight against domestic violence.
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BBC-NEWS-SRC: https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-internacional-60603976, IMPORTING DATE: 2022-03-03 14:00:06
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