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May 15 (UPI) -- The Ukrainian folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra released a new music video for its song "Stefania," which won the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 on Saturday, filmed in bombed towns in the war-torn country. A message at the end of the music video said that it was filmed in such cities as Bucha and Irpin, where Russian forces have been accused of committing war crimes against Ukrainian civilians.
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The video largely depicts female Ukrainian soldiers carrying young children through the rubble of each of the shelled cities.
"Dedicated to the brave Ukrainian people, to the mothers protecting their children, to all those who gave their lives for our freedom. Every man, every woman, every innocent child," the message reads.
"The war in Ukraine has multiple faces, but it is our mother's face that keeps our hearts alive in the darkest of times."
In the description for the video on YouTube, frontman Oleh Psiuk wrote that he had once dedicated the song to his mother but that the song "took on a lot of new meanings" when the war broke out.
"Although there is not a word about the war in the song, many people began to associate the song with mother Ukraine. Moreover, society began to call it the anthem of our war," he wrote.
"But if Stefania is now the anthem of our war, I would like it to become the anthem of our victory."
World leaders, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, have congratulated Ukraine for winning the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 for the third time.
Ukraine's win has raised questions about where the song contest will be hosted next year, as the winning country normally takes that honor.
The European Broadcasting Union, which owns and operates Eurovision, said in a statement that it would discuss "all the requirements and responsibilities involved in hosting the competition" with Ukraine's public broadcaster and other stakeholders.
