Ukrainian Nobel peace laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk calls on F1 driver and Red Bull ambassador Max Verstappen to force Red Bull to stop its activities in Russia

Oleksandra Matviichuk — director of Ukraine’s Centre for Civil Liberties and a winner of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize — has appeared at the Red Bull Formula 1 racing headquarters outside London in a projected video appeal to the world champion driver Max Verstappen. Matviichuk called Verstappen to use his influence and persuade Red Bull to pull out of Russia.

Unlike most global brands, Red Bull has refused to cut ties with Putin’s Russia; the energy drink is still on sale in supermarkets across the country. Last night, Matviichuk’s face appeared on the side of the company’s F1 HQ in a 50 m2 message, with the human rights defender delivering a two-minute appeal to Verstappen of the Red Bull racing team.

“This is a message to Max Verstappen and all Red Bull athletes. I know that driving a Formula 1 racing car is dangerous, but for millions of people, it’s very dangerous just to be in Ukraine. I am in Kyiv, and we, like other Ukrainian cities, are constantly being shelled by Russian rockets,” says Matviichuk in the projected film.

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