The first lady had just returned from a trip to Washington, DC, to plead with the US Congress to provide Ukraine with more weapons to fight the war. Its increased presence in this area is becoming increasingly critical as international attention wanes and war-related gas prices rise even higher. But Mr Zelensky and his wife have been frank about the distinction between economic struggles and the existential threat facing their country. “I will be very honest and perhaps not very diplomatic: Natural gas is nothing. Covid, even Covid is nothing when you compare it to what is happening in Ukraine,” Mr Zelensky told Vogue. “Just try to imagine what I’m saying is happening in your home, in your country. Would you still think about gas prices or electricity prices?’ The first lady, in a separate interview, said that these last five months were the worst in the life of every Ukrainian, including her own. “Honestly, I don’t think anyone knows how we did emotionally,” he said. “She’s probably stronger than she thought she was,” Zelensky, 44, said of his wife. “And this war – well, any war is likely to bring out qualities you never expected to have.”
