American actor Sean Penn has given his Oscar to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during a visit to the capital Kyiv, BBC reports.

Video posted on Zelensky's Telegram channel also showed the president awarding Penn Ukraine's Order of Merit.

“This is for you. It’s just a symbolic silly thing, but if I know this is here then I’ll feel better and strong enough for the fights,” Penn tells Zelenskyy in the video. “When you win, bring it back to Malibu, because I’ll feel much better knowing there’s a piece of me here.”

Penn, who is known for his political activism as much as he is for his films, fled Ukraine in March while filming a documentary about the conflict.

He later said he considered joining Ukrainian forces to fight against Russia.

Kremlin officials previously added Penn, and fellow actor Ben Stiller, to Russia's "stop list", meaning they are now banned from entering the country.

This is the third time Penn visits Ukraine after the February 24 full-scale invasion by Russia.