FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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EU envoys in Thailand launch online sunflower campaign for Ukraine

EU envoys in Thailand launch online sunflower campaign for Ukraine

European Union (EU) embassies in Thailand launched an online campaign on Thursday, asking Thais to post their photos with a sunflower in support of Ukraine, which has been involved in a war with Russia.

As part of the “Sunflower for Solidarity” campaign, David Daly, the EU’s ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to Thailand, and the ambassadors and diplomats of 19 member countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden and Spain, posted photos holding a sunflower in their embassies’ Facebook posts with a message both in Thai and English.

The message reads: “The sunflower is Ukraine's national flower. It also has a deep meaning in Thai, as resisting the sun – like what the Ukrainian people are doing right now, resisting the unprovoked aggression from Russia. We invite you to participate in our Sunflower for Solidarity campaign by posting a photograph of yourself with a sunflower on social media. We are sending a message to the world that might is not right. We #StandWithUkraine.”

Long regarded as a symbol of peace in Ukraine, the sunflower has become a way for sympathisers to show solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

EU envoys in Thailand launch online sunflower campaign for Ukraine

Awareness of the association between sunflowers and Ukraine grew after the Russian invasion began on February 24. The news outlet Ukraine World shared a video on Twitter, showing a Ukrainian woman in the southern Kherson region giving sunflower seeds to Russian soldiers while telling them to put the seeds in their pockets so the flowers would grow where they die on Ukrainian land.

The viral video has racked up more than 8.6 million views on Twitter since it was uploaded on February 24.

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