‘Strong friends who help’: Zelenskyy praises US first lady’s focus on abducted children; reaffirms push for ‘all-for-all’ prisoner swap

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday expressed his gratitude to US first lady Melania Trump for penning a “peace letter” to Russian president Vladimir Putin, addressing the abduction of Ukrainian children.Zelenskyy said the abductions highlighted one of the most “painful and difficult issues” of the conflict and reaffirmed his commitment to pursuing an “all-for-all” exchange of prisoners of war.“I want to thank @FLOTUS Melania Trump for her attention to one of the most painful and difficult issues of this war, the abduction of Ukrainian children by Russia. We deeply appreciate her compassion and her letter to Putin,” Zelenskyy said through a post on X.‘This issue lies at the heart of the war’s humanitarian tragedy, our children, broken families, the pain of separation. At least 20,000 children were taken,” Zelenskyy said. He added that he gave US president Donald Trump a letter from Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, to be passed on to Melania Trump.“Her (Melania's) voice matters, and her care gives strength to this cause,” Zelenskyy added.The Ukrainian president said the government continued efforts to secure the return of children, as well as prisoners of war and civilians held in Russia. Some of those detainees, he noted, have been imprisoned since 2014.“Thousands of people still need to be freed – and this is a part of making peace. We will work to negotiate all-for-all prisoners of war exchange, and we are grateful to have strong friends who help,” Zelenskyy said.Zelenskyy’s comments came after Trump said on Tuesday that he and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen discussed the “massive worldwide problem of missing children.” Trump described the issue as a priority and said efforts would be made to reunite children with their families."Ursula von der Leyen, the distinguished and highly respected president of the European Commission, and I have been discussing the massive worldwide problem of missing children. This is, likewise, a big subject with my wife, Melania. It is a subject at the top of all lists, and the world will work together to solve it, hopefully bringing them home to their families!" Trump said through a post on Truth Social.Melania Trump penned a letter on August 15 addressed to Putin and urged him to act to protect Ukrainian children, saying he could restore their laughter and safeguard their innocence."Such a bold idea transcends all human division, and you, Mr Putin, are fit to implement this vision with a stroke of the pen today," the letter read. "It is time."Zelenskyy’s talks with the US president came shortly after Trump met Putin over the weekend. European leaders also gathered in Washington to express solidarity with Ukraine and press to bolster security guarantees in any post-war framework.Participants included Trump, Zelenskyy, UK prime minister Keir Starmer, French president Emmanuel Macron, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, German chancellor Friedrich Merz, Finnish president Alexander Stubb, Nato secretary general Mark Rutte, and Ursula von der Leyen.