WASHINGTON (AP) — The Russian invasion of Ukraine has given the small country’s embassy in Washington an unexpected role: a recruiting center for Americans who want to join the fight.
Diplomats stationed at the embassy, in a townhouse in the city’s Georgetown neighborhood, are accepting thousands of offers from volunteers willing to fight for Ukraine while they work on a much more pressing issue – securing weapons to defend against the increasingly brutal Russian onslaught.
“They really consider this war unfair, unprovoked,” said Ukraine’s military attaché, Major General Boris Kremenetsky. “They feel they have to go and help.”
American volunteers represent only a small fraction of foreigners seeking to fight for Ukraine, who, in turn, make up only a tiny fraction of the international aid coming into the country. However, it is a reflection of the passion ignited in the age of social media that sparked the attack and mounting civilian casualties.
“These are not mercenaries who come to earn money,” Kremenetsky said. “These are people of good will who go to help Ukraine fight for freedom.”
The US government is discouraging Americans from participating in the fighting in Ukraine, which raises legal and national security questions.
After the February 24 invasion, the embassy in Washington received information from at least 6,000 people who were interested in volunteering, the “overwhelming majority” of whom are U.S. citizens, said Kremenetsky, who oversees screening for potential U.S. recruits.
According to the general, half of the potential volunteers were quickly rejected and did not even get to the Zoom interview. They did not have the necessary military experience, had a criminal record, or were ineligible for other reasons such as age, including a 16-year-old boy and a 73-year-old man.
Some who showed interest were turned down because the embassy said it couldn’t do an adequate background check. The general did not disclose the methods of checking people.
Kremenetsky, who spoke to The Associated Press shortly after returning from the Pentagon to discuss the military equipment his country needs to defend it, said he appreciates support from both the US government and the public.
“Russians can only be stopped with hard fists and weapons,” he said.
So far, about 100 US citizens have been laid off. According to the attache, among them are veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with combat experience, including helicopter pilots.
They must make their own way to Poland, where they must cross the border at a specified location, with their own protective equipment, but without the weapons they will receive upon arrival. They will have to sign a contract for free service in the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government says that about 20,000 foreigners from different countries have already joined the organization.
Boris Wzhesniewski, a former Liberal MP in Canada who is helping to facilitate recruitment there, said about 1,000 Canadians have applied to fight in the war over Ukraine, the vast majority of whom have no ties to the country.
“Volunteers, a very large part of whom are former military, are people who made the difficult decision to join the army in order to uphold the values that we share,” Wzhesniewski said. “And when they see what’s going on in Ukraine, they can’t stay away.”
It’s unclear how many U.S. citizens willing to fight actually made it to Ukraine, and the State Department has urged people not to make the trip.
“Of course, for some time we have been very clear in urging Americans who may be living in Ukraine to leave Ukraine, and instructing Americans who may be thinking about going there not to go,” Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said. told reporters recently.
US citizens are not required abroad. The State Department says it’s not sure how many of them entered Ukraine after the Russian invasion.
According to a senior federal law enforcement official, in some circumstances, Americans could face criminal penalties or even lose their citizenship by taking part in a foreign conflict.
But legal issues are just one of the many concerns of US authorities who are worried about what might happen if an American is killed, captured or recruited while there to work for foreign intelligence upon returning home, said the official, who spoke on terms anonymity to discuss sensitive security issues.
Official and independent security experts say some of the potential foreign fighters may be white supremacists who are believed to be fighting on both sides of the conflict. They may become more radical and receive military training in Ukraine, thereby posing an increased risk when they return home.
“These are people who want adventure, a sense of significance and return to the rhetoric of World War II,” said Ann Speckhard, who as director of the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism has extensively studied foreigners who fought in Syria and elsewhere. .
Ukraine can only get around some potential legal problems by facilitating recruitment abroad and requiring volunteers to sign their contracts and receive weapons upon arrival in the country. In addition, attributing them to the territorial defense forces, and not to the advanced units, this reduces the likelihood of a direct battle with the Russians, although it does not exclude it.
The general admits the possibility of using any captured foreigners for propaganda purposes. But he did not dwell on this issue, focusing instead on the need to protect his country from Russia.
“We are fighting for our existence,” he said. “We are fighting for our families, for our land. And we’re not going to give up.”
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Associated Press contributor Rob Gillis of Toronto contributed to this report.