'True friend' — Sean Penn misses Oscars to visit Ukraine, meets Zelensky in Kyiv
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American actor and filmmaker Sean Penn missed the March 15 ceremony of the Academy Awards, where he won his third Oscar, because he was traveling to Ukraine.
At the 98th ceremony in Los Angeles, Penn received the Best Supporting Actor award for his role in the film One Battle After Another. Actor Kieran Culkin, who had won in the category the previous year, accepted the award on Penn's behalf and said the actor could not attend.
Instead, Penn arrived in Kyiv on March 16, where he met with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
"Sean, thanks to you, we know what a true friend of Ukraine is," Zelensky said.
"You have stood with Ukraine since the first day of the full-scale war. And we know that you will continue to stand with our country and our people."
Penn has visited Ukraine multiple times since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022.
The actor was in the country on the first day of the invasion and later filmed the documentary Superpower about the war and Zelensky's leadership.
The film premiered on Feb. 24, 2023, at the Berlin International Film Festival.
During previous visits, Penn presented one of his Oscars to Zelensky and urged organizers to allow the Ukrainian president to address the awards ceremony. Penn's humanitarian organization CORE Response has also provided financial assistance to Ukrainian refugees.
In 2022, Ukraine awarded Penn the Order of Merit, third degree, in recognition of his support.
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