Actor Sean Penn has said Ukraine “will win” its war with Russia, in a series of TV appearances designed to boost support in the US for Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the country’s effort to repel the invading forces.
Penn appeared on The Last Word With Lawrence O’Donnell on MSNBC, where he affirmed his belief that Ukraine is “going to win this thing … it’s a certainty.” He stressed the unity of the population, adding: “It’s an exciting moment in history … They look at each other and they say we’re together.”
Penn said that he found Zelenskiy and Ukrainian unity to be an inspiration for the American people, offering the US a way to overcome the divisiveness that has plagued it for decades, saying: “This is freedom of thought and true leadership that is just so moving. It’s the kind of moving that we need to be able to get [to the US], which is borderline a kind of populist lapdance of a nation at this point. We’ve got to get back on track together and realise that Ukraine, with all its diversity, has a unity we’ve never seen in modern times.”
Penn also appeared on Fox News’ show Hannity, where he discussed the war with host Sean Hannity. Penn praised Zelenskiy saying: “In him, I saw something I’d never seen before,” and repeated his assertion of Ukraine’s eventual victory over Russia. “It is clear to me that the Ukrainians will win this. The question is at what cost.”
Penn was revealed to have been in Ukraine making a documentary as the Russian invasion began, and was present at a press briefing in Kyiv in February, having previously visited the country to shoot footage in November. At the time Zelenskiy released a statement saying: “Sean Penn is among those who support Ukraine in Ukraine today. Our country is grateful to him for such a show of courage and honesty … The more people like that – true friends of Ukraine, who support the fight for freedom – the quicker we can stop this heinous invasion by Russia.”
Penn has continued to vocally support the Ukrainian cause, calling for private money to buy fighter planes for the Ukrainian air force and demanding that Zelenskiy be allowed to speak at the Oscars ceremony, saying he would “smelt [his Oscars] in public” if it didn’t happen. In the event, Zelenskiy did not address the Oscars but did make an appeal to the audience at the music industry equivalent, the Grammy awards.
