‘If Ukraine Falls, the Free World Falls’: Why Foreign Volunteers Fight

Support for Ukraine goes far beyond weapons and sanctions: volunteers from across the world – including Belarusian, Russian, Chechen and Georgian formations as well as many individuals – fight under Ukrainian command.

Three volunteers in the 41st Separate Mechanized Brigade’s drone unit – a 56-year-old German explosives expert called Opa, an American from Colorado nicknamed Denver, and a French drone engineer known as Sova – say they joined because they see Ukraine’s survival as central to European security and democracy.