Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine. Photo / AP
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine. Photo / AP
EDITORIAL
A year ago after Russian troops invaded Ukraine, the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, faced a chorus of problems all at once.
One of the most significant was how to keep the attention, sympathy, and support of significant areas of the world’s population.
Zelenskyy, a former comic actor, knew theshortness of people’s attention spans and the limited shelf life of news cycles were obstacles. People can’t stay emotionally shocked for long unless they are directly impacted by events.
The president and his team have managed to maintain high news coverage worldwide of the conflict and an ongoing level of interest in it for a year, even though - apart from volunteers in an international legion - there are no Western combat troops there.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, holds the flag of a military unit as an officer kisses it, during commemorative event on the occasion of the Russia Ukraine war one year anniversary in Kyiv. Photo / Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP
It’s a remarkable feat that’s crucially made it easier for leaders of other countries, in the midst of tough times, to keep supporting Ukraine. That has been Ukraine’s lifeline.
Zelenskyy has been determined and defiant, but also smart and strategic.
He’s presented himself as a compelling, authentic personality who can hold people’s interest and stands out among other politicians of lesser appeal.
He has created ongoing drama and debates, covered in the news, about Ukraine’s needs and military supplies and received most of what he’s sought. There has been consistency in his praise and criticisms of allies.
Former Defence Minister Peeni Henare, right, with Ukrainian counterpart Oleksii Reznikov at the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen in Kyiv. Photo / Supplied, File
He has created narratives over what it means for the rest of the world for Kyiv to hold on, and how they have gone about their innovative defence.
This ability to maintain momentum within a crisis that has no end in sight, is particularly interesting for New Zealand at the moment.
This country is not at war, but we have been through weeks of natural disasters that require hefty bills just to restore some normality. And it’s also apparent, over the long-term, more expensive measures are needed to deal with climate change.
Efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions go hand-in-hand with attempts to better withstand the damage and chaos of extreme weather events. The more that countries, including New Zealand, cut emissions now, the better life here will be in coming decades. We are getting a taste of warming just short of the 1.5C best-case scenario.
Illustration / Rod Emmerson
How does that effort over time avoid potholes of fading interest, normalisation, division, incompetence, politicking and competing priorities?
Both mainstream political leadership and the majority of the public need to regularly exert pressure to get projects done. It’s easier for leaders to take a hard decision if people clearly support the need for it. As much as possible should be done in a bipartisan way.
Seen through the Zelenskyy lens, leadership can marshall crucial measures. It needs to make an example of the crisis and be dogged, undeterred by claims that actions can’t be done.
It can frame changes and explain them in ways that make sense to communities. For instance, continued access via roads is critical for businesses in a tourist area to survive.
It comes down to a choice between planned moves to keep communities going, or more ad hoc reactions and reliance on cheap options, leading to ongoing upheaval and major stress on society.
