Ben Stiller wrote on Twitter: “Just arrived in Poland, ahead of #WorldRefugeeDay with @Refugees to meet people who’s lives have been impacted by the war in #Ukraine.
“At the Medyka border in Poland I met families who fled the war in Ukraine, leaving loved ones behind, with no idea when they will be able to return home. I’m so impressed w/ @refugees representatives and how committed they are to supporting people on their journeys. #WithRefugees (sic)”
Ben also spoke about his trip to Poland on Instagram, noting that millions of people “have been forced to flee their homes” since the start of the war with Russia.
He added: “I’m here to learn, to share stories that illustrate the human impact of war and to amplify calls for solidarity. I hope you’ll follow along and share your own messages of support, for people who have fled their homes in Ukraine and for people who have been forced to flee all over the world.”
Ben ended his social media post with a powerful message about the refugee crisis.
He said: “Everyone has the right to seek safety. Whoever, wherever, whenever.”
A released video shows Stiller telling Zelenskyy: “It’s a great honour for me. You’re my hero. You quit a great acting career for this.”
Zelenskyy fires back quickly: “Not so great as yours!”
Stiller also tells Zelenskyy: “What you’ve done and the way you’ve rallied the country, it’s really inspiring.”
Stiller, who visited the badly hit Kyiv suburb of Irpin on Monday, added: “It’s hard to understand what’s actually going on here if you haven’t been here. I was in Irpin in this morning. The level of destruction … you see on television, you see it on social media. It’s something else to see it and feel it and talk to the people [there].”
Stiller later tweeted: “It was an honour to meet President @ZelenskyyUa on #WorldRefugeeDay as part of my visit with UNHCR @Refugees to stand in solidarity with people forced to flee in Ukraine and worldwide, and bring more attention to the humanitarian situation.”
Earlier this year, fellow Hollywood star Sean Penn confessed to being startled by what he witnessed on the border between Poland and Ukraine.
The Oscar-winning actor – who was filming a documentary about the Russian invasion – shared: “We had the luxury of being able to abandon a rented vehicle on the side of the road. This was a startling thing to me; it was mostly women and children, some in groups and some just a mother and her child, in almost all of those cars.
“In some cases, the father was dropping them off and returning, because we know that from 18 to 60, men are not to leave, they’re to stay in the resistance against Russia.”
