Olena Zelenska (L) and her husband, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are still very much in love. Photo / Getty Images
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the war has only made his marriage stronger, despite the couple's long periods of separation.
Zelenskyy, 44, and wife Olena opened up about her family's forced separation in a series of interviews when Olena visited her husband in the heavily fortified presidential palace.
He described his wife Olena, whom he met 26 years ago when they were still in high school, as his "best friend".
"Of course she is my love. But she is my greatest friend," he told Vogue. "Olena really is my best friend. She is also a patriot and she deeply loves Ukraine."
In a separate interview with Piers Morgan, he told his wife directly: "When you are talking, your opinion has priority. What I would say is I don't have any other experience. I've got only one wife and I am happy. I have one wife, one love and one family. I never got any feeling there was anything wrong with us in or in our relationship. Or maybe do you feel unhappy with me sometimes?"
He added: "The war is making our relationship stronger, that's for sure."
"We are managing?" said Mrs Zelenska.
"Yes, but managing is not the right word. We are in love with each other," Mr Zelenskyy replied.
He also told Morgan that he hopes Boris Johnson will still retain a position in British politics after he quits as prime minister in September, so that he can continue his support for Ukraine.
Ms Zelenska, 44, revealed that her husband has been unable to see their two children since the start of the war with Russia more than five months ago because of ongoing safety concerns.
Ms Zelenska, her daughter, Oleksandra, 18, and son Kyrylo, nine, were sent away to an undisclosed location for their own safety.
"He's having a much harder time in this regard," Ms Zelenska told Vogue. "He suffers. And then my kids do, too, because they can't see each other."
After spending several months in hiding, Ms Zelenska emerged in early May to take a more active role in the war effort by meeting visiting dignitaries, attending public events and giving interviews to boost morale in the war-torn country.
The first lady had just returned from a trip to Washington, DC, to plead for US Congress to provide Ukraine with more weapons to fight the war. Her increased presence in this field is becoming ever more critical, as international attention wanes and war-related gas prices climb even higher.
But Mr Zelenskyy and his wife were forthright about the distinction between economic struggles and the existential threat their country is facing.
"I will be very honest and maybe not very diplomatic: Gas is nothing. Covid, even Covid is nothing when you compare it to what's going on in Ukraine," Mr Zelenskyy told Vogue. "Just try to imagine what I'm talking about happening to your home, to your country. Would you still be thinking about gas prices or electricity prices?"
The first lady, in a separate interview, said that these past five months had been the worst of every Ukrainian's life, including her own. "Frankly I don't think anyone is aware of how we have managed emotionally," she said.
"Probably she is stronger than she thought she was," Mr Zelenskyy, 44, said of his wife.
"And this war – well, any war is probably bound to bring out qualities you never expected to have."
The first family have gained widespread support in Ukraine, though some are critical of whether Mr Zelenskyy, a former comedian, is as effective as his supporters suggest. He has also been criticised for bringing many of his former colleagues and friends from television into his cabinet.
Although Mr Zelenskyy has recently fired a childhood friend who he had made head of Ukraine's security services, the rest of his team have organised a successful public image around the president and the now more emotional messaging coming from his wife.
Most people on the streets of Ukraine have positive things to say about their leading family.
"They look like they really love each other. You can feel it," one woman stopped by Vogue on the streets of Kyiv told the magazine.
Mr Zelenskyy told Vogue in a separate interview that he has been "worried sick" about his family.
"I've been missing them, I've wanted to hug them so much. I've wanted to be able to touch them," he said.
"I didn't want them to be put in danger. It's not about romance. It's about horrors that were happening here in Kyiv's outskirts and all those horrors that are happening now in our country, in occupied territories," the comedian-turned-politician said of being separated from his family.
As Oleksandra prepares for university, their son Kyrylo now wants to be a soldier.
"As a father, I would be proud if my son became a soldier, I can provide the support for him," he told Morgan.
"I know he is wearing military-style clothing. He's got quite a lot of weapons, not the kind of weapons we've got from our partners. He's ready to protect his mother and our family."