Olena Zelenska told representatives of the European Economic and Social Committee about the consequences of the war for Ukrainian children during a special debate

The First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska took part online in a special debate of the European Economic and Social Committee and talked about what Ukrainian children have to go through due to Russian aggression. "Four years of fighting for life. Four years is a lot even for an adult. And for millions of Ukrainian children, this is almost an entire childhood. The worst thing is that for 684 of our children this is a broken childhood. They died. Over 2,000 children have been injured over the years.

At the same time, even children's hospitals are not a safe place today, because Russia uses them as a target, having already damaged more than 800 medical facilities in our country," said Olena Zelenska in a video message. The first lady noted that children abducted by Russia are in an even more difficult situation. Some of them were brought home thanks to the efforts of Ukraine and partners around the world.

"I would like to thank the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, for the initiative to hold an international summit for the return of Ukrainian children in Brussels. We really count on the effectiveness of this work, because most of the abducted children are still in Russia," the President's wife emphasized.

Olena Zelenska also spoke about what the state is doing to protect Ukrainian children: underground schools and shelters are being built, school nutrition reform is ongoing, and psychological assistance is being developed within the framework of the All-Ukrainian mental health program. Some of these projects are also implemented by the Olena Zelenska Foundation. "I hope that this debate will be more than just a conversation: you can join each of the projects I have listed.