The Duchess of Edinburgh has become the first member of the Royal Family to visit Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion began in February 2022.
Sophie’s trip was intended to “show solidarity with the women, men and children affected by war”, Buckingham Palace said.
The palace also said it was a continuation of its work to advocate for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.
The duchess, 59, met with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and first lady Olena Zelenska.
Sophie visited a memorial in Bucha
Sophie met children from displaced families.
Sophie, who is a full-time working member of the Royal familyHe also gave them a private message in a letter from the King.
The senior royal official met with people displaced by the war and visited the site of a mass grave in Bucha where victims of the Russian occupation were buried.
The duchess laid flowers at a monument containing the names of the victims.
At the beginning of the conflict, after Russian forces left townSeveral bodies were found with their hands tied behind their backs, apparently shot at point-blank range, in what could be a war crime.
The Duchess of Edinburgh and Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska visited a cathedral
The Duchess met an Orthodox priest in Bucha
The royal also visited a cathedral with the first lady in the capital, kyiv.
He Ukraine The trip was at the request of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
In the two years since the war began on February 24, 2022, at least 10,582 civilians have been killed and 19,875 injured in conflict-related violence in the country, according to the Human Rights Monitoring Mission of the UN in Ukraine (HRMMU).
Among those murdered were 5,017 men, 3,093 women, 311 boys and 248 girls. Among the injured are 6,524 men, 4,546 women, 585 boys and 422 girls.
The royal announced their commitment to championing the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) and the UN’s Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda on International Women’s Day 2019 .
Over the years, the Duchess has visited several countries to highlight the impact of historical and current conflict.
These include Kosovo, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Colombia.
And he has heard first-hand accounts from survivors of conflict-related sexual violence.
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The WPS initiative recognizes the impact of conflict on women and girls, as well as the positive role women play in conflict resolution and peacebuilding.
It promotes the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in peace processes and politics, the palace said.
PSVI is a UK Government-led initiative raising awareness of how conflict-related sexual violence is used as a weapon of war.
This violence disproportionately affects women and girls, but it also affects men and boys around the world.
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The initiative seeks to galvanize the world to take more action to address sexual violence in conflict by promoting prevention, strengthening justice and accountability, and supporting all survivors and children born of sexual violence. related to conflicts.