Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia and New Zealand, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, presented the award to Powell on behalf of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Myroshnychenko praised the organization’s “ongoing work at the front,” which has evacuated more than 7,000 civilians since 2022.
The organization has also produced around 8,000 stoves and water heaters and delivered over 3,500 tonnes of medical aid, including 75 ambulances and support vehicles. Powell stressed that the award belongs not only to him but to all team members in Ukraine as well as supporters in New Zealand, Australia, Poland, Romania, and the USA.
The ceremony took place in front of a Kiwi K.A.R.E ambulance that was hit by a Russian drone in the Kherson region in 2024. Since then, the organization has been attacked six times, and three ambulances have been destroyed. Powell called the destruction of a clearly marked civilian ambulance a war crime.
Kiwi K.A.R.E operates without state funding from New Zealand and relies on private donors. The organization cooperates with Ukrainian authorities and communities.
Source: www.kyivpost.com
