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Ken Rhee, a former lieutenant in the ROK Navy (from Rhee’s Instagram)

Ken Rhee, a former South Korean Navy lieutenant who volunteered to fight in the war in Ukraine, told a local Ukrainian news outlet that he had suffered minor injuries during recent military operations.

He also predicted that the war could continue for some time.

The Ukrainian weekly Novoye Vremya published an interview with Rhee on its website Saturday. Speaking about his military experience, Rhee said, “As part of the Korean navy seals, we rescued hostages in Somalia: there were many counter-terrorist operations there in 2009-2011, and I gained a lot of combat experience there.”

“After that, I was in Iraq during quite difficult periods, just as I came to Ukraine — in the first week of the war, when Kyiv was under threat of enemy invasion,” he added.

Discussing his activities in Ukraine, he said, “Then we had successful missions in Irpin. But there were also not very successful [missions, such as] when two of my comrades were wounded.”

“We fought against Russian tanks, armored vehicles and soldiers in the central park of Irpin, which we were trying to liberate. And I'm happy to be part of two groups of liberators who eventually expelled the Russians,” he continued.

Rhe said that after fighting in Irpin, he traveled to southern Ukraine, where he said his team is still conducting operations. “But I was wounded during the last military operation and have to spend a few days in a military hospital under examination,” he said.

Regarding his motivation for volunteering to fight in Ukraine, Lee said, “I saw on TV what was happening here [in Ukraine], I couldn’t believe that Russia could just invade a sovereign state.”

“As a former special forces operator, I have skills that can really help the military here. If I just sit idle, doing nothing and watching CNN, it will be wrong,” he said.

He went on to say that his mother opposed him fighting in the war, but that he tried to persuade his family by saying someone needed to go to Ukraine to lend a hand, and who better than him to do it.

Some of the difficulties Lee cited with his experiences in Ukraine had to do with the cold temperatures and food.

When he arrived in Ukraine in early March, the weather was colder than in South Korea, which created difficulties for combat, he explained. He also said that the meals at the front consisted of chicken porridge for breakfast, lunch, and dinner — adding that he would take nutritional supplements whenever he visited Kyiv because the quality was not always good.

Lee further explained that while the Ukrainian special forces he fought with had been trained well, he has experienced some issues with differences in culture and mindset.

“I trained with the Korean and U.S. military, where we always spent a lot of energy on planning,” he said. “Ukrainian fighters are somewhat different, they are like a flash — they just go and fight, improvising.”

Adding that there had been around 10 South Koreans on the battleground since the onset of the war, he said, “Many Ukrainians are still surprised to see an Asian, because it's a very rare phenomenon.”

Describing his future plans, Lee said, “It's obvious that one day I'll have to go back home to reboot myself, get better equipment, better prepare and come back here again. To keep doing what I do until Ukraine wins.”

“The problem is that my stay in Ukraine is considered illegal at home. Each country has different laws, and the Korean ones are very strange.” he explained, adding, “Therefore, I think that when I return, they will try to arrest me at the airport only for participating in this war.”

He added that he plans to receive letters from the Ukrainian government to help him make his case in court.

“But even at the risk of being imprisoned, I still believe that I made the right decision,” he said.

When asked how he expected the war to end, Lee said, “If Ukraine does not win the war, any neighboring country that opposes Russia or tries to join NATO will be under threat.”

“Russia will continue to attack, and it will never end. Therefore, I believe that this war is, in a sense, a world war,” he continued.

He also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “not one of those guys who gives up easily.”

“And Ukraine is definitely not going to surrender. That's why the war will last for some time,” he added.

Lee served for eight years with the South Korean Navy’s Underwater Demolition Team (UDT) and elsewhere. He emerged as a celebrity last year with his appearances on the military-themed reality show “Fake Men,” and he has a YouTube channel with 800,000 subscribers.

By Park Byong-su, senior staff writer

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