Last year I worked on an article about foreign fighters and volunteers in Ukraine. The piece focused on people fighting on the frontlines of the US-led war who are not eligible to be allowed anywhere near the battlefield and have access to weapons and military equipment against Russia.
Among those I interviewed: Ryan Wesley Ruth, 58, who on Sunday spoke to former President Donald J. The FBI is investigating an assassination attempt against Trump.
I was introduced to Mr. Najim Rahim by an old colleague and friend from Kabul. Contacted Routh. As one war ends and another begins, Mr. Learned about Ruth.
Having spent some time in Ukraine, Mr. Routh, trying to rally support for the war, tried to recruit from Afghan soldiers fleeing the Taliban. So ex-Afghan soldier Mr. Ruth figured he could take him to the Ukrainian front. (Even the war was better than the situation in Iran for Afghans after the Taliban retook Kabul in August 2021.)
There were some problems. A former construction worker from Greensboro, NC, Mr. Ruth said he had never fought in Ukraine — he was too old and had no military experience.
But like many foreign volunteers who appeared on Ukraine’s borders in the early months of the war, he was eager to make a name for himself, putting aside his previous career for something more exciting.
“In my opinion, everyone should support the Ukrainians,” he told me, his voice urgent, angry, and a little skeptical over the phone.
In March last year Mr. When I spoke to Ruth, she had compiled a list of hundreds of Afghans spread between Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Mr. Ruth told an Afghan she was helping: “I’m a citizen.”
Mr. My conversation with Ruth was brief. He was in Washington, D.C., and had scheduled a two-hour meeting with some congressmen about Ukraine. (It is unclear whether that meeting ever took place.)
A few minutes later I met Mr. By the time he got off the phone with Ruth, it was clear he was in over his head.
He talks about bribing corrupt officials, creating fake passports and doing whatever it takes to transport his Afghan personnel to Ukraine, but he has no real way to accomplish his goals. At one point he mentioned organizing a US military transport flight from Iraq to Poland with Afghan refugees ready to fight.
I shook my head. It seemed ridiculous, but Mr. The tone in Ruth’s voice said otherwise. He’s going to support Ukraine’s war effort.
Like many of the volunteers I interviewed, he fell off the map again. Until Sunday.
Nazim Rahim Contributed report.
