“If necessary, cut off my leg!” The story of a wounded French soldier who is ready to continue fighting for Ukraine

“If necessary, cut off my leg!” The story of a wounded French soldier who is ready to continue fighting for Ukraine

September 12, 2023 │

Nicolas Brandon is a French fighter of the International Legion of Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. After a serious injury sustained in December 2022, for nine months, doctors have been unable to provide him with proper treatment due to bureaucratic hurdles. Such negligence could cost him his leg. However, despite this, Nicolas does not lose his fighting spirit and strives to return to the front lines. The 28-year-old French fighter, who is currently in a military hospital in Lviv, shared his story and military journey with Zahid. Espreso media outlet. Dreamed of becoming a soldier since childhood Nicolas is from the city of Montauban in southern France. He is a professional soldier and served for two years in a battalion involved in demining. He also provided security in public places, as in France, military personnel assist the police in patrolling areas with large gatherings of people. Since childhood, Nicolas dreamed of military training, as his father is also a military man who fought in Chad and was injured there. Source: Yuriy Martynovych Before coming to Ukraine, Nicolas worked as a laborer for some time. However, when he saw in the news that Russia had attacked Ukraine, he decided that he needed to help the Ukrainians defend their independence. “I came here to protect the civilian population and defend freedom. When I heard that foreigners could fight here, I immediately bought a bus ticket and headed to Poland to get to Ukraine,” says Nicolas, who didn’t even have an international passport because French citizens only need an internal document to travel within the Schengen area. This didn’t hinder his entry into Ukraine. He fought in Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Luhansk regions In March of last year, Nicolas entered Ukraine for the first time. The bus driver provided a sheet for a taxi driver where he wrote where he needed to be taken, and that’s how Nicolas arrived at the Yavoriv training ground. He arrived there at night and wasn’t immediately allowed into the territory but was placed nearby where civilians were stationed. Nicolas could hear the flights over the training ground with his own ears. “I spent three days at the base. On the third evening, we boarded a bus that took us to Kyiv,” Nicolas recounts. At first, he and other foreign fighters were tasked with guarding...

The conscription of those with limited fitness for military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. How will the mobilization of limited-fit soldiers affect the effectiveness of combat units?

The conscription of those with limited fitness for military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. How will the mobilization of limited-fit soldiers affect the effectiveness of combat units?

September 10, 2023 │

The Ministry of Defense has canceled nine “controversial” articles that exempted individuals from military service. According to various estimates, there are tens of thousands of men with limited fitness for service in Ukraine. The Parliament is considering completely removing this category. In Ukraine, it has been decided to conscript individuals with limited fitness for service into the army. The ranks of the Armed Forces may now include individuals with clinically treated tuberculosis, viral hepatitis, and asymptomatic HIV. The Ministry of Defense provides an explanation: if a serviceman is found unfit for service in one speciality, the unit commander can refer them to a Medical Board. Doctors will then determine their fitness for a new type of activity. The document outlines the procedure for the Medical Board to make a decision on the causal relationship between a medical condition, injury (wounds, concussions, mutilations), military service and the defense of the country. The right approach, according to the MP from the Servant of the People party and the Deputy Chair of the Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Mariana Bezuhla, is to completely eliminate the category of “limited fitness for service.” See also: How an operator, a florist and a record-breaking athlete, who helped the Armed Forces to defend the region, died for Ukraine There will be only two criteria left: fit or unfit for military service, she explained to Focus. “We have expanded the 402nd order of the Ministry of Defense from 2008. It had unrealistic criteria for service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine during peacetime. The selection criteria need to be updated due to the start of Russian aggression in 2014 and full-scale war in 2022. I won’t discuss the list of diseases; it’s a complex issue. The implementation and changes to the order will be worked out in a working group. We are considering the possibility of excluding the category of limited fitness for service during wartime,” the politician noted. The Ministry of Defense order mentions making everyone with “controversial” articles 2-v, 4-v, 5-v, 12-v, 13-v, 14-v, 17-v, 21-v, and 22-v fit for service. Here is their brief decryption: 2-v — Clinically cured tuberculosis. 4-v — Viral hepatitis with minor functional impairments. 5-v — Asymptomatic HIV. 12-v — Anemia, blood clotting disorders. 13-v — Endocrine system diseases with minor functional...

Section: Social

Who supports Russia in France?

Feb09

Who supports Russia in France?

February 9, 2023 │

Who supports Russia in France? From the first days of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there was an almost unequivocal consensus in French politics to condemn the aggression. Any justification of Russia’s actions by party leaders would be considered political suicide. However, the level of support which France should provide...

Unfair trial and loss of soldiers. Why the law on toughening military punishment is dangerous for the army

Feb03

Unfair trial and loss of soldiers. Why the law on toughening military punishment is dangerous for the army

February 3, 2023 │

See also: The biggest geopolitical scam of the 20th century: why Russia’s influence in the UN is baseless On December 13, 2022, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) adopted Law No. 8271, which significantly increases criminal liability for Ukrainian soldiers. According to this law, the military will be punished more severely for unauthorized...

The history of Scythian gold from Melitopol, which Ukrainians found, then buried, and could not save from Russia

Jan21

The history of Scythian gold from Melitopol, which Ukrainians found, then buried, and could not save from Russia

January 21, 2023 │

Gold of the Scythians, ancient mosaics, Cossack jewels [kleynods, symbols of Cossack authorities – ed.] – all this and much more was created or found on the territory of Ukraine. However, we cannot see it now. More precisely, theoretically, we can, but in the Tretyakov Gallery, the Hermitage Museum, or other Russian museums. See also: The...