OTAWA – When Paul Hughes crossed into Ukraine to help fight the Russians earlier last month, he expected to be armed and led to the front lines.  But he could not get a gun or ammunition.
The 57-year-old Calgary native, who served on Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry from 1983 to 1987 during the Cold War, said he was disappointed.
“I think you should find a different word from disorganization,” Hughes said in an interview with Lviv, describing the so-called International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine.
“I do not think they were ready for this call to action.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called on people around the world in February to help his country fight the Russians by joining an “international brigade,” and Kyiv said about 20,000 foreigners had responded.
However, some Canadians who want to take up arms for Ukraine have said they have encountered unexpected obstacles, with some like Hughes finding a lack of organization, even when others have left before they can get out the door.
A group of Ukrainian lawmakers who visited Ottawa last week supported the need for more foreign volunteers.  Ukrainian MP Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said the “freedom fighters” were not only welcome, but “inspiration and encouragement”.
He also noted the call, saying that Ukraine wanted “everyone who knows how to fight or who can provide medical assistance”, such as paramedics.
Bryson Woolsey, a 33-year-old cook from Powell River, BC, said he was fired for lack of combat experience.  He was disappointed, especially since he spoke publicly about his desire to help.
“I felt like I was disappointing people,” Woolsey said in a text message on Facebook.
“I guess in a way I felt insincere.  Like I said, I did this thing and then I couldn’t.  “It was tough.”
Former Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj is part of a group of volunteers who volunteered to help the Ukrainian Embassy in Ottawa contact and vet a Canadian who wanted to answer Zelenskyy’s call to arms.
Despite the “huge” response, Wrzesnewskyj says his team’s work is in a “conservation pattern” as Ukrainian officials struggle with the huge volume of applications.
“It is important that those who volunteer volunteer have military combat experience,” he said.  “These are the types of people who are called.”
Retired Canadian General Dennis Thompson said much had changed in Ukraine since February, with Ukrainian forces having since then softened Russia’s attack in many areas and begun to repel them.
“The phone call was probably taken in those early days, when people mistakenly thought the Russians were really going to flood the country,” Thompson said.
He said military training and the ability to communicate on the battlefield are crucial to ensure that volunteers are in fact assets rather than liabilities.
It is not clear how many Canadians have actually gone to Ukraine to fight or who they are, but Wrzesnewskyj said none of those working with his team were accepted.
“Having said that, it seems that many Canadians are moving out of control,” he said.  “They do it themselves.”
The Ukrainian embassy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Those like Hughes who arrived in Ukraine have reported challenges, starting with the lack of weapons.
“What did we expect to do?”  he said.  “In a hand-to-hand trench battle with the Russians?  That is not the case. “
Thompson wondered if such issues were related to poor logistics and why it was due to the Ukrainian government having second thoughts or wanting to do more thorough volunteer control first.
“As far as we know, anyone who shows up at your doorstep could just be a psychopath,” he said.  “Or he might be a little romantic who really thinks he’s doing the right thing, but honestly, he’s not going to be able to contribute.”
Hughes said he was told he would have to sign a contract stating he could not leave until the war was over, although he could leave if he “really wanted to”.
He decided not to participate.
While Wrzesnewskyj said others had expressed concerns about contracts, Thompson said such deals were not uncommon, noting that Canadians who volunteered for World War II did so for the duration.
The contracts formalize the position of volunteers in the Ukrainian army, Thompson said, establishing a legal framework for their involvement in a conflict increasingly defined by alleged human rights violations and war crimes.
He cited as an example the French Foreign Legion, which requires an initial five-year contract.  It is a military force made up of foreign volunteers between the ages of 17 and 40 of any nationality.
“The famous French Foreign Legion is full of expatriates, but everyone has sworn in properly,” Thompson said.  “And they are all considered French soldiers when they go to the field, so that they can be protected.”
Wrzesnewskyj encouraged Canadians to help Ukraine with humanitarian aid and donations, something Hughes and Wolsey have done.
Woolsey said he used the media spotlight to raise donations.
Hughes said he had started an organization called Helping Ukraine Grassroots Support that provides medical supplies and food across the country.
He is disappointed that he is not fighting, but he said that he is excited to make a real difference on the ground.  He has fallen in love with the place and plans to stay as long as Ukraine has him.
“I’re just in this weird, twisted, horrible world right now,” Hughes said.  “I never, even in my dreams, thought I would live this.  I have been here for a month and I feel like I have been here for five years.  Or a life. “