Irishman Bailey Patchell who volunteered to fight in the war in Ukraine has called on the Irish army to supply Ukrainian forces with military equipment for training purposes.
23-year-old Bailey returned home this week after almost five arduous months spent in Ukraine. He decided to go to the country to fight shortly after the war broke out despite the understandable distress of his mother.
He described the current situation as a "stalemate" and appealed to the Irish army to consider sending on valuable military equipment to assist the defence of Ukraine. Irish soldiers previously appealed to the government to send unused missile launchers to Ukraine worth €150,000 each.
READ MORE: Dublin Aviva Stadium used as temporary shelter for 100 Ukrainian refugees
“The ones in Ireland are reaching their sell by date. If the Irish army aren’t using them, please do us a solid and send us on a few javelin missiles,” he told RTE's Liveline.
Bailey previously spoke about his decision to fight in Ukraine back in March alongside his mother Pam, who both went under pseudonyms at the time. His mother spoke of her relief to have her son back home and admitted that she contacted his commander on several occasions to see if he was still alive.
Bailey opened up about the effect the war has had on him, admitting that he had seen fellow soldiers sustain serious injuries and lose their lives while fighting.
“It’s not something you easily forget. There’s people you will mourn for the rest of your life. You have such a connection to those guys. They are my mates and I miss them terribly. You can only grieve after the fact,” Bailey told listeners.
Bailey was studying counselling and psychotherapy before joining the International Legion of Defence of Ukraine. His superiors were hesitant to send Bailey to the frontline but he was insistent on going. He luckily never sustained any serious injury while fighting, although he did temporarily struggle with his vision following a bomb blast.
He was quick to praise his fellow fighters and mentioned that they even gave him and fellow Irish volunteers a St Patrick’s Day gift in recognition of the support of the Irish people. Bailey also revealed on one occasion that soldiers sang the 'Irish Rover' to keep spirits high while on the frontline.
It was estimated that around 20 Irish people went off to fight in Ukraine at the onset of the war. Irish journalist Pierre Zakrzewski was killed in a bomb blast near Kyiv back in March.
READ MORE
- Homeless crisis will be 'catastrophic' this winter due to 'perfect storm
- Shots fired at Dublin home in early morning incident
- Man in critical condition after attack in Mulhuddart
- Busy Dublin Road to be partially shut to private cars until 2024
- Prisoner killed in Mountjoy was moved after previously being assaulted days before fatal attack
Sign up to the Dublin Live Newsletter to get all the latest Dublin news straight to your inbox.
