A photo of a wrecked ambulance hangs prominently at the entrance to the Ukrainian embassy in Bratislava, making it clear to our volunteers that no explanation was needed regarding Ukraine’s dire need for these vehicles. Ukrainian diplomats are well aware of the critical needs of the Ukrainian army and society, which is enduring the immense burdens of this war.

Instead, we shared with the diplomats how many new volunteers are joining our mission—people who have never had any prior connection to Ukraine, have never visited it, but now feel its pain and suffering deeply and want to help.

Astronaut Terry Virts presented the diplomats with his book of photographs of the planet taken from space, including images of Ukraine.

At the end of the meeting, the volunteers held a press conference for the Slovak media. Terry Virts spoke not only about his positive experiences in space but also about the profound impact of watching the explosions in Donbas from the International Space Station in 2015 alongside a Russian cosmonaut. This moment left a deep mark on him and became one of the reasons he decided to actively support Ukraine. His Russian colleague from that mission later became a member of the State Duma and is now a staunch supporter of Putin’s war against Ukraine.

Following the press conference, Terry Virts gave an interview to a Slovak TV channel, where he emphasized that people in the West should not feel war-weary until Ukrainians do. He noted that it’s difficult to imagine the conditions Ukrainian society is enduring—losing loved ones, experiencing constant shelling, and being unable to sleep peacefully for years. While tragedies and accidents occur in every country, they are usually short-lived; the war in Ukraine, however, is a prolonged catastrophe. “We have no right to give up,” said the astronaut.