Zelensky cuddles adorable puppy given to him by former American boxer Terence Crawford
Wait.President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s war chief, holding a puppy?Yes, and it’s no accident.
In a collision of dog lovers, sports and ongoing war with Russia, the Ukrainian president was seen on video Tuesday as never before — cuddling and cooing over a floppy, 3-month-old American pit bull terrier, handed to him by U.S.former boxer Terence Crawford.The cute and fluffy scene in Zelensky’s office in Kyiv was the latest volley in a deadly serious battle of visuals that runs in parallel to Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s brutal four-year invasion.Crawford, a longtime supporter of Ukraine and a devotee of the American pit bull terrier, came forward and handed a reddish-yellow puppy to Zelensky.And for a few minutes in Kyiv, cultures, death and geopolitics yielded to the power of sweetness and puppy love, as well as the symbolism of resilience and protection.It’s a truism of the political world: If you want a friend, get a dog.
Zelensky, weighed down by war and scandal, seemed to have found both in the light-eyed puppy that melted into his chest.The president smiled and cooed something into the dog’s fur.He cradled her as he was told the pup’s name is Freya — after Zelensky’s pet project, Freyja, Ukraine’s proposed missile defense system with European allies.He was further informed that Freya’s grandfather survived the devastating Russian siege of Bucha in 2022.
Zelensky cuddled the pup close as they posed for photos.She appeared to relax, letting two white-tipped paws dangle from Zelensky’s arms.“The president said he would accept” Freya, said Vadym Danylchenko, adviser to the minister of youth and sports in Ukraine, who helped organize the visit.Politically and culturally, it might have been problematic to refuse.
Animals have become a symbol of the nation’s forbearance during the four-year war.One mural in a Kyiv park immortalizes a Jack Russell terrier named Patrone who is renowned for assisting mine-clearing teams i...