Richard Branson in Ukraine to meet Volodymyr Zelensky

The alliance between business and politics in the face of war. On Wednesday, British billionaire Richard Branson met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in kyiv, at the latter’s invitation. “The main purpose of my visit to Kyiv was to meet and listen to Ukrainians, to understand their fears and concerns and also to learn what the business world, hand in hand with civil society and governments, can do to support Ukraine as effectively as possible,” he wrote on his Twitter account, sharing an image of his meeting at the Ukrainian presidential palace. “I remain optimistic that Ukraine and its people will win this war, regain control of their territory, their sovereignty and their future. But more than ever, we all need to come together and confront the threat facing Ukraine and the world,” he added.

Earlier, the founder of the Virgin group had visited Hostomel, in the Kyiv region, where an airfield was severely damaged by Russian strikes. According to the “Kyiv Post”, “he expressed his interest in the airfield which belongs to the state-owned Antonov Enterprise and the possibility of restoring it”. “We talked to our guest about the prospects and existing projects for the reconstruction of the airport,” said the head of the military administration of Hostomel, Taras Dumenko. Within the airport, there is in particular the An-225, a huge cargo plane presented as one of the successes of Ukrainian industry, which was destroyed in the first week of the conflict.

“It is clear that these kinds of attacks are not improvised or arbitrary. They are part of a deliberate strategy to spread fear and terror among the Ukrainian civilian population. I hope that the Russians responsible for these shocking acts will be held responsible,” said Richard Branson, quoted by the “Daily Mail”. “I remember Kyiv very well from my previous visits in 2014 and 2015. It is a beautiful capital, with a magnificent historic cityscape, built on the banks of the majestic Dnieper. But one can only see the scars of war across the city, especially with the carcasses of residential buildings hit by Russian airstrikes and missile attacks,” he continued.