Ukraine's children are living proof of the terrible consequences of wartime
A conference organised by Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska focused on the safety of children living through armed conflicts, ITV News International Editor Emma Murphy reports
In a ballet dress decorated with golden trident emblem of Ukraine and a smart suit with a tiny national flag stitched to the arm, two children dance for an audience of First Ladies and Gentlemen, film stars, sports stars.
Sasha and Roman are eight and nine respectively - they were the youngest performers at a summit in Kyiv to promote child protection.
They had earned their place on the stage not just through their talent but also through their experiences.
Sasha dances on a prosthetic leg, Roman’s face is hidden beneath a special mask to protect his scars. Both were injured in attacks on their home towns and have endured months of operations and therapy.
If those at the Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen needed a reminder of the importance of their subject these two tiny dancers provided it.
A year before war broke out in Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, the newly elected First Lady decided to use the reach of her office to bring together her fellow political spouses to tackle global challenges.
She had no idea then that within months her country would become one of the world’s most pressing global challenges.
Three years on the fourth summit took place this week in Kyiv. This year’s theme, child protection.
With hundreds of children dead, thousands injured, millions displaced and others disappeared it is one of the most challenging issues in Ukraine.
Sadly, for the youngest in this world, it is not an issue unique to one country.
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In the capital city of a nation at war, political spouses from around the world gathered with a random grouping of high profile experts and advocates to discuss how best to help the most vulnerable in society.
Michael Douglas, a UN messenger of peace and his son Dylan, Karim Khan, war crimes prosecutor, joining with the First Ladies of Finland, Guatemala, Belize, Estonia, Lithuania and Serbia alongside the First Gentlemen of Denmark and Slovenia to hear what protection children need and how often they are failed.
Sasha and Roman were living proof of the terrible consequences of that failure and the harm it does to childhood.
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