10/06/2026
What happens when ordinary people leave their home countries to fight in a war?
In this episode of Explaining Ukraine, British journalist Colin Freeman discusses the foreign volunteers who joined Ukraine's International Legion and what their experiences reveal about modern warfare.
🔸 Thousands of foreign volunteers answered President Zelenskyy's call in 2022, motivated not by money but by a desire to help Ukraine resist Russian aggression.
🔸 Most volunteers were not mercenaries. Many accepted significant financial and personal sacrifices to serve alongside Ukrainian forces. Foreign volunteers are paid the same as Ukrainian soldiers (around $500-600/month), indicating they are motivated by the idea, not mercenary gain.
🔸 Russia falsely portrays the war as against NATO, using the presence of foreign fighters as "mercenaries," despite Russia itself employing Wagner mercenaries and North Korean troops.
🔸 Western militaries (e.g., the British Ministry of Defence) have largely failed to engage returning foreign fighters, even those with direct combat experience against Russia, to learn about modern warfare.
🎧 Listen to a conversation https://ukraineworld.org/en/podcasts/ep-420
