Adam's unit patrolling at a destroyed bridge in Kiev. Photo: Hieu Le
Like Adam, he said his previous combat experience prepared him only so much when confronted with the asymmetric nature of warfare in Ukraine, where Russia has bombarded towns and cities with rockets as President Vladimir Putin launched the largest military offensive in Europe since World War II. “Even those with military experience, you’ve got to realise that there isn't a war that has been fought like this in a long time,” Le said. “What's different with the US military and all the other NATO militaries—they're spoiled. When it comes to fighting a war, they have air support, medivac, logistics, all kinds of different levels of intelligence, and support. Here in Ukraine, we had none of that.”“The distinct risk of catching a bullet in the back from some criminal guys [on your side] was a lot higher than comfortable.”
Hieu Le sold Vietnamese noodle soup in Medellin, Colombia until three weeks ago. Photo: Hieu Le
For Le, however, it was not solely for these reasons that he called an end to his time in Ukraine after two weeks. To explain that decision, he soberly recalls the events of one mission in meticulous detail, after which he knew he had experienced enough. Patrolling a forest in western Kiev on March 18, Adam’s unit encountered the body of a Georgian soldier from their barracks killed by rocket fire. Unwilling to leave him behind, both Adam and Le helped carry his stiff, lifeless corpse 8km through thick forest to the nearest road. There, Le would search his uniform for ID, writing down on a piece of scrap cardboard his name, details and date of death, before lifting him into a waiting vehicle. “Because of rigor mortis, we had to break his legs and his arms to get him in there. These cars are super small here in Europe,” Le said. “It was pretty gruesome, I'll never forget it.” He described the sorrow he felt seeing other Georgian soldiers paying their respects to the body. This experience with death would prove too traumatic to bear repeating, and Le would depart the country days later, saying he “did not realise how much it would affect me.”“Because of rigor mortis, we had to break his legs and his arms to get him in there. These cars are super small here in Europe. It was pretty gruesome, I'll never forget it.”
Soldiers from Adam's unit carrying the body of a fallen Georgian soldier. Photo: Hieu Le