Cate Blanchett Compares Refugee Crisis to WWII

Correction Appended, Oct. 15 2015

Actress Cate Blanchett says the current refugee crisis is a “complex situation,” likening the issue to the second World War.

“It’s a very complex situation but it’s a global issue and it’s very hard for the countries who have been very open to the Syrian refugees,” said Blanchett in an interview with Sky News at the BFI London Film Festival. “The more other countries don’t step up to the plate it puts a great burden on those countries and those populations.”

Blanchett then compared the crisis to WWII: “Clearly these people are in massive crisis and if you think back to the second World War, knowing what we know now, we don’t want to look back in 50 years time and think we weren’t there, we didn’t help,” she said.

Blanchett has been a vocal supporter of refugees, and traveled to Lebanon with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to meet with those fleeing persecution, and releasing a video in September asking for more support for the refugee the crisis.

Correction: The original version of this story misstated which agency Blanchett accompanied to Lebanon. The actress traveled with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.