An appeal by Ukraine for foreign volunteers to join the fight against the Russian invasion has been welcomed by some European nations.
Volunteers can join the new International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine by applying through their local Ukrainian embassy, USA Today reported.
“Anyone who wants to join the defense of Ukraine, Europe and the world can come and fight side by side with the Ukrainians against the Russian war criminals,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to the Washington Post.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine has already received “thousands of requests” from people who wish to join the defense force, USA Today reported.
Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine on three fronts early Thursday, Feb. 24, “bombarding cities, towns and villages” as troops advanced toward the capital of Kyiv.
Ukrainian forces are putting up a “very determined resistance,” particularly in Kyiv, which is under heavy Russian attack by artillery and cruise missiles, Reuters reported.
No other nations have sent military units to assist Ukraine, which is not a member of NATO. President Joe Biden has said the United States will not send troops to Ukraine.
Ukraine, the second-largest nation in Europe by land mass, was part of the former Soviet Union until it declared independence in 1991.
What is the new ‘international legion?’
A 2016 decree allowed foreigners to join the Ukrainian military as volunteers, The Guardian reported.
“Every friend of Ukraine who wants to join Ukraine in defending the country, please come over,” Zelenskyy said, Insider reported. “We will give you weapons. Everyone who is defending Ukraine is a hero.”
“Together we defeated Hitler, and we will defeat Putin, too,” said Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs, on Twitter.
The appeal for international volunteer fighters is “unprecedented in modern warfare,” The Guardian reported.
How are European nations reacting?
On Monday, Feb. 28, Latvia’s parliament voted unanimously to allow its citizens to fight in Ukraine as volunteers, Reuters reported.
In Denmark, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called fighting in Ukraine “a choice that anyone can make,” The Washington Post reported.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told BBC News that she supports Ukraine’s call for foreign volunteers.
She said Ukrainians were fighting “not just for Ukraine but for the whole of Europe.”
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