Zelensky’s wife Olena Zelenska urges Britain to abandon its ‘Ukraine fatigue’

The First Lady of Ukraine has pleaded to Brits suffering under soaring energy bills to remember that Ukraine is still counting casualties.

In a powerful interview with the BBC, Olena Zelenska has reminded the world that while the rest of Europe has been suffering under the energy crisis, Ukraine has been at the forefront of Russian attacks.

This comes as Russian energy giant Gazprom indefinitely cuts off all Nord Stream supplies to Europe following three day maintenance. 

She said: ‘The prices are going up in Ukraine as well. But in addition our people get killed.

‘So when you start counting pennies on your bank account or in your pocket, we do the same and count our casualties.

‘I understand the situation is very tough. But let me recall that at the time of the Covid-19 epidemic, and it’s still with us, when there were price hikes, Ukraine was affected as well.

Speaking on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, Mrs Zelenska also said that if support for Ukraine was strong the energy crisis would be shorter.

This comes as it was revealed Britain may be forced to buy back gas exported to Europe over fears of low supplies this winter. 

Due to the UK’s lack of storage, supplies previously shipped to terminals in the UK and then piped abroad will have to be pumped back into the country as temperatures fall. 

Fuel has been sent to the European Union via the UK as countries struggle to fill up their storage sites, with Russian president Vladimir Putin being accused of using fuel as a weapon against the West. 

Britian does however typically buy gas back from the Continent during winter, but this year the UK is exposed to higher prices due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

This comes as the scale of energy rationing that may be required at home, in the NHS, schools, care homes, shops, pubs and on the streets of Britain because of surging energy prices and the threat of blackouts is laid bare.

Experts have told MailOnline there is ‘no escape’ for the 66million people in the UK who will be encouraged to cut their use of gas and electricity this winter and even turn off the lights when the wind drops.  

Despite this Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has hailed Boris Johnson as a ‘true friend’, as the outgoing Prime Minister stresses the human toll of the war on Ukrainians compared to the soaring energy bills in the UK in his final days in office.

During his final visit to Kyiv as prime minister last month, Boris Johnson said: ‘If we’re paying in our energy bills for the evils of Vladimir Putin, the people of Ukraine are paying in their blood.’

Writing for the Mail on Sunday, Mr Zelensky paid tribute to UK solidarity with Ukraine following the Russian invasion. He also promised to forge ‘close relations’ with the new prime minister.   

The Ukrainian president used the article to thank Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, calling them ‘great leaders and friends of Ukraine’.

Mr Zelensky wrote: ‘At each and every meeting and conversation between us, Boris had one very good question: What else? What else do you need?

‘It became our watchword, guaranteeing effective progress. Believe me, not many politicians are ready to do this.’ 

The Ukrainian president also praised Boris Johnson for prioiritsing the needs of Ukraine despite the challenges he was facing at home. 

He said: ‘I know it has not been an easy ride for Boris Johnson as he had to deal with many internal challenges. Prioritising support for Ukraine demanded a great courage and determination.

‘We even started to address him, warmly and humorously, as ‘Boris Johnsoniuk’ – a Ukrainian sounding surname if you put a stress on the last syllable – inspired by his Instagram account @borisjohnsonuk.’ 

The Ukrainian president said he would welcome whoever the next prime minister is and would establish ‘close relations’.

‘I sincerely hope that Boris’s legacy in this fight against Russian barbarism will be preserved.

‘We will continue to fight on because we do not have any other option. It is our lives and our future at stake. And we still need the UK’s support and leadership.’

The Ukrainian first lady also spoke about the video of a Ukrainian boy filmed crying crossing the border into Poland in March.

She said: ‘I think that fathers and mothers watching this video could not but break into tears. I always place myself in their situation and I think that everyone – every human in the world should feel the same.

‘That’s why we have to tell these stories, to show these stories, because these are the faces of a war.

‘Not a number of bombs dropped, not the amount of money spent, human stories – and there are a thousand stories like that around.’

The interview will be broadcast tomorrow on the Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.

Mrs Zelenska also said that while she rarely sees her husband Volodymyr Zelensky, they speak every day.

The BBC reports that she said she was ‘insulted’ by any surprise that her husband could shift from TV actor to war leader.

‘He’s the man I’ve always known. He wouldn’t do anything else.’ 

Mr Zelensky has agreed with his wife in an interview with The Times, where he says the threat from ‘Putin the Nazi’ outweighs pain of rising energy bills.

 He said that he had no time to fear western war fatigue, brought on by Putin’s weaponisation of energy supply, and says the rising cost of bills is ‘incomparable’ to the lives lost in Ukraine.