Milla Jovovich shared her supported for Ukraine on Friday amid the ongoing invasion by neighboring Russia.
The 46-year-old Resident Evil star — who was born in Ukraine — wrote on Instagram that she was ‘heartbroken and dumbstruck’ as she came to terms with the deadly military invasion.
The actress noted that she felt ‘torn in two’ because of her heritage from both Ukraine and Russia, though she shared a series of links for her fans to help Ukrainians under siege.
Solidarity: Milla Jovovich — who was born in Ukraine — shared her support for Ukrainians and wrote that she was ‘heartbroken’ by the Russian invasion in an Instagram post from Friday; seen February 19 in LA
Jovovich’s comments come a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin order Russian troops amassed at Ukraine’s border with Russia to attack the country, including the nation’s capital of Kyiv, which is hundreds of miles from the border.
‘I am heartbroken and dumbstruck trying to process the events of this week in my birthplace of Ukraine,’ she wrote in her somber Instagram note. ‘My country and people being bombed. Friends and family in hiding.
She continued, ‘My blood and my roots come from both Russia and Ukraine. I am torn in two as I watch the horror unfolding, the country being destroyed, families being displaced, their whole life lying in charred fragments around them.’
The Fifth Element star compared the fighting in her birth country to the experiences of her father, a doctor hailing from Serbia, which was at one time part of the former Yugoslavia.
Speaking out: She attacked ‘leaders who cannot bring peace’ and ‘the never-ending juggernaut of imperialism’ in her impassioned statement
Helping out: Jovovich also directed her fans to links to donate to Ukrainian refugees, as well as the country’s military; seen in 2019 in Cannes, France
Jovovich didn’t sound optimistic that the current attack on Ukraine would spare its civilians.
‘I remember the war in my father’s homeland of former Yugoslavia and the stories my family tells of the trauma and terror they experienced,’ she wrote.
‘War. Always war. Leaders who cannot bring peace. The never ending juggernaut of imperialism. And always, the people pay in bloodshed and tears.’
The actress disabled comments on her post and included a link to a document directing her followers to funds supporting Ukrainian refugees, as well as the country’s military and its independent journalists.
Under attack: Russian forces under the order of President Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine earlier this week, and they have moved inland to assault the capital of Kyiv; Kyiv seen on Friday
Jovovich was born in the capital city of Kyiv (often spelled as Kiev) in 1975, when Ukraine was still part of the Soviet Union.
It would later become an independent country in 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Following an initial buildup of Russian forces at the border last year, a full-scale invasion of Ukraine commenced earlier this week.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has so far refused evacuation offers from the United States.
Leading up to the invasion, Putin claimed that Russian forces would ‘denazify’ Ukraine, but neo-Nazi groups in the country have had little electoral success, and Zelensky is Jewish.
Staying put: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has so far refused evacuation offers from the United States; Zelensky (center) seen on Friday
Doesn’t hold water: Leading up to the invasion, Putin claimed that Russian forces would ‘denazify’ Ukraine, but neo-Nazi groups in the country have had little electoral success, and Zelensky is Jewish; Putin seen on Tuesday in Moscow
Though Jovovich was born in Ukraine, she spent much of her childhood in Moscow, before emigrating to London when she was only five.
Less than a year later, her family moved again to California, eventually settling in Los Angeles.
Early on, she worked as a model and actress, before breaking out with her lead role in the 1997 science fiction film The Fifth Element.
She’s most identified with the Resident Evil series of horror films, in which she starred as the lead.
In 2009, she married the film series’ first director, Paul W.S. Anderson, and they share three children.
Success story: Jovovich moved to London when she was only five, followed by the US. She went on to star in The Fifth Element and the Resident Evil horror film series; seen in 2017 with Paul W.S. Anderson and daughter Ever
