Ben Stiller and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky. Image Source: RTE

President Volodymyr Zelensky is Ben Stiller’s hero!

After touring occupied communities in the Kyiv region as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, actor Ben Stiller visited Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky. In a press release, the official website of Ukraine's president stated. Since 2016, Ben Stiller has served as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees' envoy.

The President of Ukraine stated that the people of Ukraine are aware of the support of the whole globe, including many celebrities, and that Ben Stiller's visit to Kyiv verifies this. Ben's excursions to Irpin and Makarov, as well as his encounters with Ukrainians, say a lot, according to Volodymyr. He also expressed gratitude for his decision to visit them at this tough time for their country.

The actor and the President were seen greeting each other warmly before they sat down to discuss the situation in the country, which is torn and displaced by an invasion by Russia and its military. At one point, the audience can hear Ben Stiller tell the President that he’s his hero before adding that it’s his greatest honor to be meeting him here and saying that what he had, the way he rallied the country and or the world was inspiring. The actor further added that it’s a very different thing to see the destruction on a TV or social media than to see it with one's own eyes, which is more shocking than it looks.

Ben Stiller spoke to BBC on Tuesday and shared his experience of being in Ukraine, he claimed it was his first time seeing a conflict zone, and it was strange for him to observe everything. Ben noted that it's strange because when you travel into the country, especially in the west, you don't notice the fighting, except for the curfew at night, when it becomes really quiet and scary, and that people in Lviv appeared to be returning to normalcy, or at least attempting to do so.

Ben went on to say that when one passes or travels closer to Kyiv, towards the east of the country, they begin to notice roadblocks and devastation, which is rather alarming since you haven't seen anything like it up close before. People in Kyiv, according to Ben Stiller, are/were attempting to go about their daily lives as normally as possible, such as going out to supper. But, as he explained, they were well aware that the conflict may come back to bite them.

The president, who has been praised around the world for handling the situation as best he could and for refusing to flee the country rather than staying and helping as much as he could, told the actor that what he saw in Irpin was terrible, but it's even worse to imagine what's going on in the eastern settlements that are still under temporary occupation. President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ben Stiller also discussed help for Ukraine's temporarily displaced people, as well as those in Poland, where Ben Stiller paid a visit on Sunday. President Zelenskyy stated that speaking about the conflict every day for the audience, for various individuals, is not entertaining, but it is extremely necessary for the people of Ukraine to speak and talk about it. He went on to say that it's tough to push Russia when people forget about its impact.

Ben Stiller appeared in a separate video appealing to the audience, and the video was streamed on the UNHCR Instagram page. He informed the audience that he is in Ukraine and added that war and violence are devastating people all over the world. Ben Stiller added that nobody chooses to escape their home, and seeking safety is a right that everyone should be able to exercise. He also stated that he is meeting people who have been affected by the work and learning about how their lives have altered as a result of it. Ben Stiller also said in his video that he is there to study and share tales about the human toll of war, as well as to voice calls for solidarity. The actor took to his social media to thank Ambassador Bridget A. Brink for taking out some time and discuss things needed at this moment for the displaced people. 

Ben Stiller was accompanied by Karolina Lindholm Billing, a UNHCR official in Ukraine, who led the Hollywood actor on a stroll through Irpin's damaged residential districts, where they spoke with people who had survived the occupation. The actor's visit to Ukraine comes after Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to push millions of people to escape the war-torn country, compounding a worldwide crisis in which the number of displaced people has surpassed 100 million for the first time.

Angelina Jolie, who has previously spoken for the people of Ukraine and is an UN humanitarian paid a surprise visit to Lviv in April when the actress spoke to displaced people who had taken up residence in the city. Last month, famous Irish rock band U2's members including Bono and The Edge performed a performance in favor of the Ukrainian people in a Kyiv metro station.