By John Cookson and Daniel Hojnacki
“To be honest, this is not my award,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Atlantic Council Global Citizen Awards on Wednesday night in New York. The award, he explained, instead belonged to Ukrainian men and women in uniform, to the Ukrainian children killed by Russian forces, to doctors and teachers back home, to the United States and the European Union and all the countries that help Ukraine fight for its survival. He looked first to others, showcasing the unselfish spirit that each of the Global Citizen Award honorees shares.
Atlantic Council Chairman John F.W. Rogers drew attention to this paradox in his opening remarks: those most deserving of honor for their impact on the world are often the most selfless. The honorees, he explained, are examples of “civic virtue—symbols of self-regard giving way to the common good.”
In addition to Zelenskyy, the Global Citizen Awards also honored Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and US Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen. Victor L.L. Chu, the chief executive officer of First Eastern Investment Group and co-founder of the Global Citizen Awards, received a special Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the Atlantic Council and a better world.
Amid the celebration of the honorees in the room, Atlantic Council President and Chief Executive Officer Frederick Kempepraised the courage and resilience of someone behind bars thousands of miles away: Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter who has been “falsely and cynically accused of espionage” by the Russian government and has been detained in Moscow since March 29. Honoring Gershkovich’s parents, who were in attendance, Kempe spoke of the need for the journalist’s release. “We are prepared to do whatever we can as a global community to bring Evan home,” he said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy: An award for Ukrainians and those who fight for freedom and democracy
- Hours after his address to the United Nations General Assembly, Zelenskyy accepted his Global Citizen Award to a standing ovation. “Tomorrow, I will be in [the] White House, so I have to save energy,” he said, making light of his brief remarks.
- “To be serious and to be very honest,” he then said, the true honorees were others. “I address this award to Ukrainian men and women in uniform,” he said. “I address this award to all our sweet children who have been killed by Russian terrorists—I will never forget them.”
- Zelenskyy thanked “all brave countries who have been with us and supported us.” He also thanked the doctors and teachers who have stayed in Ukraine, providing care and instruction even under attack from Russian missiles and Iranian drones.
- “I address this award to all the people in the world who fight for freedom and democracy, like we Ukrainians,” he concluded. “Slava Ukraini.”
“I address this award to all our sweet children who have been killed by Russian terrorists.”
Ukrainian President @ZelenskyyUa accepts the @AtlanticCouncil’s 2023 Global Citizen Award
Article link: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/2023-global-citizen-awards-a-tribute-to-selflessness-and-cooperation/
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