Artikel über einen jungen niederländischen Freiwilligen, der gerade seinen Abschluss gemacht hat und in einer Drohneneinheit an der Front in der Ukraine dient. Englische Übersetzung in den Kommentaren.

[LEIDEN](https://www.omroepwest.nl/nieuws/4910114/afgestudeerde-karst-vecht-mee-aan-het-oekraiense-front-natuurlijk-heb-ik-angst) – It is exactly one thousand days ago on Tuesday that Russia began the large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Karst from Leiden is at the front as a drone pilot in the Ukrainian army. ‘The bond with people around me has changed, because they do not understand my choice.’

Karst is currently staying in a safe house about thirty kilometers from the front in the Donetsk region, in eastern Ukraine. He has just returned from a long mission and is tired. ‘But I can’t complain, because I have only just arrived’, says Karst, who started working in a drone unit of the Ukrainian army six months ago. ‘Some of the guys here have been fighting for 2.5 years. They are really tired.’

The exhaustion among the troops is fueled by the losses of territory that Ukraine has suffered, especially since this summer. ‘It is not very positive how things are going at the front’, he admits. ‘You can see that things are getting worse and that we are losing ground quickly and a lot.’

**Stuck on both sides**

Karst has had to move back a line with his unit three times already. He is not afraid that Russian soldiers will suddenly appear on his doorstep. ‘It is still unthinkable for that to happen. The Russians are making progress, but it is still very much at a standstill on both sides.’

‘If we withdraw a line, it will only be a few kilometers. In addition, communication within the Ukrainian army is very good and there are still quite a few lines of infantry for our unit.’

Back to February 24, 2022, the day that Russia began the annexation of Ukraine. At that time, Karst was still studying in Leiden and watched with dismay what was happening some two thousand kilometers away from him. ‘What happened affected me very much. A fairly democratic country, that was invaded just like that, purely and simply because Russia wants to conquer territory.’

Shortly after the outbreak of the war, he decided to travel to Kiev to see the situation with his own eyes. ‘I went there openly and asked Ukrainians how I could help them. I soon came to villages that had been liberated shortly after the Russian invasion. What I found there was horror. I saw completely destroyed villages and dead civilians.’

Back in the Netherlands, Karst couldn’t get the images out of his mind. In the past two years, he therefore decided to travel to Ukraine repeatedly to provide aid, while he was pursuing a master’s degree in Leiden. ‘During that period, I learned to understand and speak the Ukrainian language a little and I started to understand the culture better. These people don’t want war, but their lives back. Everyone has lost someone close to them.’

Nevertheless, Karst started a full-time job in the Netherlands in 2024. A wrong choice, as it soon became apparent. ‘I wondered what I was doing with my life. I was now earning money for a boss, while in Ukraine rocket attacks were still taking place every day, war crimes were being committed and civilians were being killed.’

He decided to quit his job and move back to Ukraine. ‘During one of my previous trips to Ukraine, while delivering food parcels, I came into contact with an American who worked for a Ukrainian drone unit, where English was spoken and there were also foreigners.’

Karst applied, was hired and, after an extensive background check, underwent intensive, months-long training. ‘But that was perhaps not even the hardest part of it all. I also had to tell my family and friends. It took me a while before I dared to do that. No one was jumping for joy about what I was going to do. There were people around me who supported me, but also people who didn’t understand.’

‘They didn’t understand that a Dutchman with a master’s degree would volunteer to sit in a trench in Ukraine. There is no argument, but I do notice that my bond with some has changed. That is one of the hardest things about being here. You experience so much and you want to get your point across. At the same time, you don’t want to do that all the time to worry people at home. Those are the moments when you feel the loss of family and friends the most.’

Within his unit, Karst manages drones and carries out reconnaissance and kamikaze flights. When he is on a mission, he is at the front for one to three days. ‘We leave with the cars at 5:00 and then dig ourselves a few meters underground when we are on location.’

‘It is sometimes very strange. Then we sit for hours waiting for commands from higher up. In the meantime, I watch videos on YouTube, while the artillery shells and kamikaze drones fly over our heads.’

‘When we have to take action, we have to take to the air with the drones as quickly as possible. What are our objectives? That can be anything. From enemy movements on the ground to neutralizing armored vehicles.’

**’Of course I’m afraid of dying’**

Karst knows all too well that he risks his life time and time again. ‘I’m very alert, I try to be rational and I look at experienced colleagues a lot. That’s how I create a way to deal with it. But of course I’m afraid. I often wonder what the hell I’m doing. People say that soldiers should be prepared to die, but I don’t think that anyone is.’

‘Every time we’re on our way to the front, I’m the most afraid. On the mission itself, I’m very focused. My adrenaline is high, time goes by quickly and I can switch off my thoughts.’ Despite all the ups and downs, Karst is ‘most happy that he can do something to stop Russian aggression’.

LEIDEN means to suffer in german.

Held! Lof voor wat je doet. Geef ze de hel!

Wees trots!
Je doet het juiste waar vele anderen alleen toekijken! (mijzelf inbegrepen wat donaties daargelaten).

Respect, verdedigt Oekraïne EN Europa

Held

Respect kerel!

Diepe buiging en respect voor Karst…

Een jongen van Jan de Witt!

I understand that you are proud of him, but please..
Write in english so that the rest of us can understand.
Most countries have volunteers fighting for Ukraina, but let everyone in on additional information etc. 

Goe bezig buurman! 🔥

Respect

Bedankt voor je strijd kerel! Ook voor MH17 🇳🇱