ACTOR BEN STILLER has travelled to Kyiv to meet Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to mark World Refugee Day.
The Zoolander star said Zelenskyy was his “hero”, saying that the president “quit a great acting career for this”.
“What you’ve done and the way you’ve rallied the country, the world – it’s really inspiring’”, Stiller said.
It was an honour to meet President @ZelenskyyUa on #WorldRefugeeDay as part of my visit with UNHCR @Refugees to stand in solidarity with people forced to flee in Ukraine and worldwide, and bring more attention to the humanitarian situation. @Refugees #WithRefugees pic.twitter.com/zpNpva233j
— Ben Stiller (@BenStiller)
The two discussed the need to keep the conflict in the news, with Zelenskyy remarking that it was “important for us that people don’t forget.
“It’s not interesting to speak about the war every day … but for us it’s very important.”
He added that people like Stiller could help keep Ukraine in the headlines.
Alongside Stiller, Bono and the Edge and Angelina Jolie are among the high-profile named who have visited the war-torn country.
Stiller, who is a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, also visited the Ukrainian city of Irpin and Lviv, where he met the US Ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget A. Brink.
Good Lviv meeting with @Refugees Goodwill Ambassador @BenStiller, who brings much-needed attention to humanitarian needs during the largest and fastest humanitarian crisis in recent memory. pic.twitter.com/ssIjKexQuz
— Ambassador Bridget A. Brink (@USAmbKyiv)
The Night at the Museum actor also went to Poland, which has taken in over one million Ukrainian refugees.
He said: “The level of destruction … you see it on television, you see it on social media – it’s something else to see it and feel it, and to talk to the people.”
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