Six British soldiers explain why they are fighting in Ukraine | World | News
Leonard T. Koonce
6 min read
Ukraine. Soldiers discuss the fight for their land against Russia
Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, prominent journalist Hamidreza Zarifinia joined the group of volunteers, crossing Ukraine from the Polish border on an eye-opening journey. Witnessing harrowing scenes, seeing tens of thousands of Ukrainians flee for their lives and seeing first-hand the damage inflicted by the Russian strikes, Mr Zarifinia described the experience as catastrophic.
When asked why the British soldiers had given their time and taken a mortal risk to go to Ukraine and fight, the British soldiers gave a solemn and courageous answer.
Mr Zarifinia said: “Since joining British volunteer soldiers traveling to Poland and then to Ukraine to defend against Russian aggression, they have explained their motivations to me in a number of ways.
“Defend the Ukrainian people against Russian military aggression; Prevent civilians from being killed; Counter Russia’s unjust aggression against Ukraine; Human duty.
“They told me that when the world, Europe and Britain were silent, human duty could not be silent.
“They believed that by defending the Ukrainian people against this blatant aggression, they would stand in the right direction of history and make history.”
He added: “Among these young volunteers were both snipers and military personnel, as well as marines.
“Some military volunteers from Canada had joined the group, who knew each other from previous wars on terror in the Middle East.”
Hamidreza Zarifinia stands with a group of British volunteer soldiers fighting in Ukraine (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
Hamidreza stands with two volunteer British soldiers at a shelter in Ukraine (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
The soldiers were relaxed and did not feel fear or worry according to Mr Zarifinia (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
The accredited journalist spent several days in the country, notably in the southern outskirts of Kiev.
When asked how the British soldiers were feeling, he said: “In the few days I was with them the only thing I witnessed was the professionalism, there was no sign out of fear or worry.
“They had a lot of energy and positive motivation to defend civilians, defenseless places and the free world against evil aggression and fascism.
“Most of them were married, talking to their children and families, and it was strange to me, unlike in the Middle East, where families cry in these situations and can create negative energy, families of these British volunteers present in the battle for Ukraine gave them positive energy and at least tried not to transmit their anxiety to these volunteers.
“So the British people, or perhaps the British statesmen, should be proud of these men.
“But the point of interest was that the Ukrainian people expressed a lot of feelings for the British volunteers and called them heroes. It made us very emotional.
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British volunteers hailed as heroes by Ukrainian citizens (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
The journalist described a desperate scene in Ukraine (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
Speaking first-hand about the scenes seen on the ground, Mr Zarifinia said: “Western cities such as Lviv and Ternopil, which had not yet experienced a state of war, were in a state of anxiety and stress. People felt extremely scared.
“The streets were like war days in the Middle East, that is to say full of anxiety, stress and fear.
“But in the central and eastern towns there was more fear and anxiety, traffic with serious safety concerns, roads mostly closed, food shortages, buildings destroyed, but the areas where I was there until March 6 had not yet been overrun by the Russians. infantry.
“The important thing is that Ukrainian men and young people intended to stay and defend, even if they were empty-handed, even with a stick.
“The Ukrainian people believe that their country has been subjected to an unjust, brutal, fascist and fabricated pretext war.”
Mr Zarifinia stayed in a safe house provided by Ukrainians to the group.
Should British volunteers fight in Ukraine? Can the Ukrainian resistance prevent Russia from controlling Kiev? Should NATO get involved in the conflict? Have your say on these pressing issues by CLICKING HERE and joining the debate in our comments section below – Every voice counts!
WARNING: Some readers may find the following image disturbing
Bodies lie in a park in Ukraine (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
Speaking about the conditions in which the British volunteers lived, the journalist said: “They were initially housed in the shelters that the Ukrainians had provided for them, and during the day they brought them food or got it themselves in the few stores that were still open.
“But in general, as they moved east, the food supply also dwindled for them.
“I can’t say exactly where they were supplied with weapons from, but I do know how many Ukrainian volunteers coordinated with them to order weapons and ammunition.”
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Mr Zarifinia described chaotic scenes on the Polish border (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
Buses full of refugees were welcomed in Poland (Photo: Hamdreza Zarifinia)
Mr. Zarifinia also spoke of the difficult conditions faced by Ukrainians trying to escape the war.
Speaking of his experience at the border with Poland, he said: “Things weren’t very well organised.
“At one of the border crossings, about 20 miles before reaching the Polish border, vehicles were queuing, some had been abandoned due to terrible traffic, some due to running out of fuel, and the occupants were running in the cold and snow.
“At the Polish border, they sometimes had to queue for 11 to 12 hours to be able to enter Poland.
“The Polish border police showed great restraint and patience, and I saw hundreds of thousands of refugees being treated as compatriots or friends.
“An asylum seeker told me he had traveled about 30 miles with a stroller.
“He told me ‘we think Europe, Britain and America are leaving us alone in this war, we are not asking for asylum, we want global action to stop Russian aggression’. “
Should the UK accept more Ukrainian refugees? What will happen if the conflict spreads to continental Europe? Did Putin miscalculate his plans for Ukraine? Let us know what you think by CLICKING HERE and joining the debate in our comments section below – Every voice counts!
Mr Zarifinia said Polish officials had welcomed Ukrainian refugees with open arms (Photo: Hamidreza Zarifinia)
A Ministry of Defense spokesperson said: “All service personnel are prohibited from traveling to Ukraine until further notice. This applies whether service personnel are on leave or not. The personnel traveling to Ukraine will face disciplinary and administrative sanctions.”
“We advise against all travel to Ukraine. Traveling to fight or to help others engaged in the conflict may be against the law and could result in prosecution.
“We fully understand the strength of feelings of British citizens and others living in the UK who want to support Ukrainians after the Russian invasion – because this is about freedom and democracy in Europe.
“Together with our allies, we provide a range of support to Ukraine, including to strengthen Ukraine’s defense capability, but this support is fundamentally defensive in nature. Neither NATO nor Ukraine pose a threat. aggressive for Russia.
“There are many ways to support the people of Ukraine right now, including through charitable donations.
“The UK has incredibly limited consular support in Ukraine and is unlikely to be able to offer assistance to anyone in the country.”
Hamidreza Zarifinia is an Iranian writer, researcher and journalist based in London.
