Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska: 'Nobody takes my husband away from me, not even war'

  Ukraine’s first lady Olena Zelenska, on Saturday, addressed media reporters alongside her husband Volodymyr Zelenskyy, marking only the second time that the couple appeared together since the war started in February. Olena, who has lately used social media to galvanise support for her country, revealed how she found out about the war and also spoke about its repercussions on her family. “Nobody takes my husband away from me, not even the war,” she asserted as Putin’s military operation continued for the 12th week.  

"The family is separated. He lives at work. For two months and a half, we didn't see each other at all, we only talked on the phone," there are a few occasions that we get to see each other. she told a Ukrainian news outlet during a telethon event. “We are waiting, just like other Ukrainian families.” 

'Saw him in suit, without a tie'

Also describing her experience on the day the conflict began, Olena said that she still remembers that she woke up from “weird sounds from outside, as probably everyone did.” It was dark, almost night and I saw that Volodymyr was not by my side,” she reckoned. As she went to the next room, she saw her husband already dressed in a suit, “but without a tie.”

“I asked him what was going on and he said, ‘It has started.’ “I can’t describe the emotions, anxiety, and stupor. He told me this and left. After that, we didn’t see each other for a very long time," the first lady explained. On the ground, the Kremlin announced the liberation of the Azovstal Steel plant in Mariupol, indicating the possibility of a land corridor between the mainland and the Crimean peninsula.

Amidst this, Zelenskyy stated that Ukrainian troops from Azovstal must return home as part of a prisoner exchange. Zelenskyy stated at a press conference that the Mariupol defenders who were withdrawn from the Azovstal plant, which had been blocked by Russian troops, should be exchanged, European Pravda reported. Mariupol was one of the initial targets of the Russian troops and was under siege for almost two months. 

(File Image: AP)