On April 4, Taipei coffee wholesaler Jack Yao (???) passed the Ukrainian army's screening process and began a new role transporting supplies and evacuating wounded on the frontlines of Ukraine's war against Russia.
Yao is one of around 10 Taiwanese volunteers in Ukraine serving in logistics roles or as members of the International Legion of Territorial Defense.
In a recent interview with CNA in Kyiv, Yao, whose only previous brush with the army was during his mandatory military service in Taiwan, said that the soldiers he is helping jokingly tell him there is a 95 percent chance he won't make it back to home. His response is always the same. "Ukraine is a good place to die.'"
As to what compelled him to put his life on the line for a foreign land, Yao explained that he wanted to help because "what happened to Ukraine could very well happen in Taiwan."
"Before we ask others for help [when a cross-strait war breaks out], we should be able to offer help to them ourselves first, that's the point I want to make," he said.
Originally, Yao thought most Ukrainians knew little about his home country, but he said that most of the soldiers he has met understood the threat Taiwan faces from China.
Taiwan's donation of medical supplies and funding to Ukraine had also significantly lifted the country's visibility among Ukrainians, he added.
The troops Yao is tasked with supporting are responsible for carrying out high-risk close-combat reconnaissance missions.
He said that the mood among the soldiers before they embark on a mission was always tense, as many knew they would not make it back alive.
"Someone you were just talking and smoking with, they head off to the frontlines -- and the next thing you know they're gone."
After serving two months in Ukraine, Yao said he realized that those who returned safely and gave those on sentry duty a chance to smoke, go to the bathroom, or take a nap were heroes just the same as those who died on the battlefield.
Yao said his family understood why he volunteered to help in Ukraine, adding that he keeps in regular contact with them when he has internet access.
But he does not wish to return home now even though it means he is risking his life day in and day out. "One can't just sever the bonds of brotherhood I've made with soldiers here," he said.
Asked about what lessons Taiwan can learn from Ukraine, Yao said the country should be trained and prepared to respond to a possible Chinese invasion.
Quoting Sun Tzu, Yao said that "the art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy's not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him."
"Few expected the Russians to come," he adds.
Before concluding the interview, Yao, currently on leave in Kyiv, warned CNA's reporters in Ukraine's capital to wear their helmets, and bulletproof vests at all times, and to listen out for air raid sirens.
"Though Kyiv is relatively safe right now, you never know if Russians will be back."
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel