British actor Orlando Bloom (46) met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (45) in Kiev. The conversation, which both Bloom and Selenskyj shared via Instagram, was primarily about the fate of children in the war-torn country. Bloom was there in his role as Unicef Goodwill Ambassador. Selenskyj spoke of the fact that thousands of schools had already been damaged or destroyed by the Russian war of aggression. “The war destroys the childhood of Ukrainian children,” said the politician.
Bloom agreed with the Ukraine President and called for “children in Ukraine to get their childhood back”. The “Lord of the Rings” star described to his counterpart a meeting with a family that has five children of their own and still took in four war orphans. It is heartbreaking to hear such stories and very encouraging. Unicef would support such parents more, since every child is entitled to a home and such constellations are better than accommodation in homes.
It was an honor for Bloom to be received by Zelenskyj, the actor said in the warm welcome. Seeing the strength of the entire Ukrainian people is inspiring to him. Even his mother supports Ukraine and has already sung the anthem in English. To say goodbye, Bloom called Zelenskyy a “Slava Ukrajini” (in English: “Glory to Ukraine”), the official military salute of the Ukrainian armed forces.
The day before, Bloom posted his impressions of his second visit to Ukraine after 2016. Pictures show him in a so-called “Spilno Spot” set up by the UN children’s fund Unicef underground in a subway station. One of 180 child-friendly places created where it is safe to play and learn. He was happy to have heard “the laughter of the children” on site, said the Brit.
In total, Bloom is in Ukraine for three days. In addition to Kiev, he also visited the city of Irpin, which was badly affected by the fighting in the first days of the war about a year ago. There he visited, among other things, a school whose basement was converted into an air raid shelter with the help of Unicef, in order to be able to offer the pupils a safe place even in the event of possible Russian air raids.
“Children, especially, need an end to war and lasting peace so they can reclaim their childhood, return to normality and begin healing and recovery,” the Pirates of the Caribbean star said. Bloom was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in 2009. According to his own statements, the now 46-year-old Briton has been a member of the United Nations Children’s Fund since he was 16.
