Exclusive Interview with President Zelensky and His Wife

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: You asked whether I thought this war would last so long. No, because I didn’t start this war, and I’m sure there isn’t a single Ukrainian who knew what this will be and what tragedy this would bring to every home in our country. Because, I repeat, we did not start this war. But Ukrainian society united and showed that it was ready for what, unfortunately, was such a tragedy showed that it was ready for these challenges. I was really impressed by the power of one nation. And was impressed by the swiftness of the response of Europe, the whole world, and the whole International Community that rallied around Ukraine for this challenge.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, HOST: First lady, what motivates you to get up in the morning? How do you feel that you have endured this war?

OLENA ZELENSKA, UKRAINIAN FIRST LADY (through translator): Well, thank you. It’s a big question. It covers many spheres of my life. And what helps me get up in the morning, surely as you said, is my husband’s example. I know that if he endures then I have to endure. If the day has begun, then we have to keep fighting. That keeps me going. It’s not easy every day but, you know, you need to keep running. You cannot stop. As Allister (ph) said, in order to stay in place, you have to run even faster. That is why we run and I get some inspiration from the kids, from the children. First and foremost, there are some ordinary things that every family is doing. You need to get your son ready for school, you need to make sure he has had breakfast. Well, unfortunately I don’t have the assurance that my child would go to school every day because of those strikes with missiles and drones. There is a lot of work. A lot of humanitarian projects that we will continue after the war. That helps a lot.