image source,Reuters
President Zelensky appeared as a hologram at a tech innovation conference in Paris, referring to Star Wars.
While Ukrainian soldiers are on the front lines resisting a Russian invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been persistent in his wide-spread campaign to ensure that international support for Ukraine does not fade as the war continues.
Zelensky’s PR offensive has included attending a series of events, meeting with a string of international leaders in Kyiv, taking pictures with celebrities and even appearing as a hologram at a tech conference.
Facing the artillery fire of a powerful enemy, Ukraine needs the help of the international community to resist the Russian invasion.
To gain that support, President Zelensky’s public relations team used creative methods to keep the world‘s attention on Ukraine’s plight.
Leverage technology
Last week, Zelensky mentioned Star Wars while speaking with tech industry leaders via holograms at the VivaTech Tech Innovation Conference in Paris.
“It’s unusual for a president or head of government to use a hologram to address people,” he said.
image source,Reuters
Several international superstars visited Ukraine after the Russian-Ukrainian war, and many of them openly supported President Zelensky.
He compared the Russian army to the bad guys from the popular Star Wars movies, saying, “This is not the only ‘Star Wars’ operation we’re doing. We’ll also defeat the Empire.”
Zelensky’s speech was designed to provide “a unique opportunity” for tech companies to participate in Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts to create a “fully digital democracy” in Ukraine.
star charm
Numerous world A-listers have supported Ukraine since the war began and have raised millions to help refugees. They have greatly increased global public awareness of the war.
These celebrities include former footballer David Beckham, musician Ed Sheeran, actors Sean Penn, Ashton Kutcher and Ukrainian-born American actress Mila Kunis.
Actor Angelina Jolie, a special envoy for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), visited Ukraine in April to meet volunteers and refugees.
image source,Getty Images
In May 2022, Zelensky delivered a video speech at the Cannes Film Festival in France, where the audience stood and cheered.
President Zelensky used to be a well-known professional actor. He is no stranger to the camera and flash, and he gets along with the supporting actors without any sense of disobedience.
On Monday, another UNHCR special envoy, actor Ben Stiller (Ben Stiller), made a special visit to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in conjunction with World Refugee Day, and President Zelensky personally welcomed it.
Stiller, a Hollywood star, told Zelensky: “It’s an honor. Great, you’re my hero.”
And earlier this year, Oscar host Amy Schumer said she tried to get President Zelensky to address Hollywood stars via video link at the ceremony “because so many people watched the Oscars. Awards ceremony”.
Combine vertical and horizontal
While President Zelensky frequently appears in the same frame with big stars, he is also actively persuading EU leaders to agree to make Ukraine a candidate member state and to ask EU countries to provide more weapons.
image source,Reuters
President Zelensky hosted a number of political leaders as he negotiated Ukraine’s membership of the European Union.
Heads of state visiting Kyiv in recent days include French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, German Chancellor Scholz and Romanian President Johanes.
President Zelensky has hosted enough Western political leaders to make a long list, including British Prime Minister Johnson and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but it is worth mentioning that he has yet to host the United States in Ukraine. President Byrne.
While U.S. President Joe Biden has secured billions of dollars in funding and weapons for Ukraine, he said he did not want to increase his visit to Ukraine midway through his recent trip to Europe so as not to “create more difficulties for Ukrainians.”
In this Russian-Ukrainian war, although President Zelensky has been seeking support from all parties, non-Western countries have big differences on whether to support Ukraine. In his speech to the African Union (AU) via video on Monday, he hoped African countries would pay attention to the negative impact of the war on the rest of the world.
image source,Getty Images
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has never let up in his efforts to garner international support since Russia’s invasion war.
He said African people had become “hostages” of the war and were at risk of starvation as the war triggered shortages of food and fertilizer. But 55 African leaders were invited to his video speech, but only four were present, the BBC understands.
Elsewhere, however, attendance was much higher for President Zelensky’s video address meetings. His speeches to the U.S. Congress and the European Union, Germany, Japan, France, Spain and Italy were highly appreciated.
Widely advertising
President Zelensky tried his best to show the world the horror and devastation the war had brought to Ukraine by visiting war-torn cities, front-line troops and hospitals.
On Saturday, he made his first trip to Ukraine’s war-torn south and visited the still-defended city of Mykolav.
During the visit, President Zelensky inspected damaged buildings and met with soldiers, officials and medical workers.
image source,EPA
Zelensky visited cities in southern Ukraine under attack by Russia.
He also visited the western city of Odessa, which has been regularly hit by Russian missiles since the war began.
In recent weeks, he has also braved Russian fire to visit other front-line cities, including Kharkiv in the east, to areas where fighting has raged.
“Please don’t change the subject”
While Ukrainian troops are on the front lines, the Ukrainian president has shown a determination to ensure that the world does not turn a blind eye to the situation in Ukraine at a critical moment.
He is in touch with a diverse audience, including celebrities and political leaders, American university students and the international media, as well as business leaders from Doha to Davos.
He even made an unexpected “appearance” at the Cannes Film Festival last month, delivering an unscheduled speech at the opening ceremony to a standing ovation from the audience.
He reappeared in Cannes via video link on Monday, kicking off the Lions Festival of Creativity and revealing where his all-out campaign for Ukraine is at the center.
“Even in times of war, you have the ability to touch the depths of the human soul,” he told the festival-goers.
“You get people talking about issues that everyone ignores,” he said, before making a heartfelt plea:
“Please keep talking about Ukraine. Don’t let the world change the subject.”