We saw the terrible things Russia did — in Afghanistan and in Ukraine

In this November 2024 interview with the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN, Matthew Sampson — a U.S. Marine veteran and volunteer with Ukraine’s International Legion — draws on more than two decades of military service to compare what he witnessed of Russian conduct in Afghanistan and in Ukraine, and explains what drew him to Ukraine’s defense.

He describes the battlefield conduct and war crimes he says he saw firsthand in both theaters, and reflects on American public opinion toward continued U.S. support for Ukraine.

Reported in Russian by UNIAN; summarized in English.