After the identity of the man behind the failed assassination attempt on Donald Trump was revealed, multiple sources revealed that Ryan Routh had been repeatedly warned about his “illegal” actions, while others called him a “con man.”
After the failure of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at his Mar-e-Lago golf course in Florida On Sunday, it was Ukrainians who were most shocked by the news.
Ryan Wesley Routhwho was arrested for his alleged plot to kill the former US president and Republican presidential candidate in the upcoming November elections, had a keen interest in Ukraine.
According to media reports, Mr Routh has repeatedly claimed to have set up a programme to recruit international volunteers to fight for Ukraine against Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbour, which is now in its third year.
However, his attempts to bring in fighters, particularly from Afghanistan, have not been welcomed with open arms.
Dozens of messages from Ukrainian armed forces soldiers, who usually do not reveal their identities for security reasons, have appeared on X, sharing screenshots of their alleged exchanges with Ryan Wesley Routh.
Many of them show Ukrainian soldiers and members of the International Legion have repeatedly told Ryan Wesley Routh to stop presenting himself as a recruiter, because his methods were questionable and gave a bad image of Ukraine.
One of the testimonies of a former member of the International Legion reports numerous warnings regarding Routh as early as November 2023.
The person, whose identity was confirmed by Rachel Jamison, director of Protect a Volunteer, said: Routh had never been officially affiliated with the foreign volunteer unit.He also shared personal information without permission and, in particular, allegedly attempted to smuggle Afghan nationals into Ukraine.
“Ryan Routh has posted numerous messages on Facebook regarding sending troops to Ukraine in 2023 and 2024. He has no authority to act on behalf of Ukraine and ignores visa laws,” reads one of the posts on X in June of this year regarding Ryan Routh’s actions in Ukraine.
“Routh is either a human trafficker or a con manor he is trying to break as many national laws as possible by trying to smuggle people into Ukraine to fight. This is unethical, unprofessional and unacceptable. Worse yet, he is doing it while insisting that he is helping Ukraine.”
What is–what Routh was promoting on his website?
Mr. Routh has repeatedly expressed his support for Ukraine on various social media platforms.
A dedicated website, titled “Fight for Ukraine,” which lists his contact details, including his email address and phone number, was still online as of Monday afternoon. Euronews confirmed his authenticity after identifying him by reviewing his past posts on X and other social media and comparing publicly available personal data.
On the website, Mr. Routh advertised his alleged recruiting efforts, giving vague details about how foreigners of “all ages, genders and skill levels” could join the Ukrainian military.
In particular, he gave detailed instructions on how potential volunteers could enter Ukraine, stating that they could “just get all the military equipment and money and fly to Krakow” in Poland. From there, the website indicated the following route: take a train or intercity bus to Przemyśl, then a local train or bus to the Medyka border crossing with Ukraine.
Although Medyka is a very popular border crossing to enter and exit Ukraine, it is one of many, and it is unclear why the website associated with Routh suggested this route.
The rest of the instructions on what to do after crossing the border are even more confusing.
“Tell the border guard you want to join the International Legion and they will take you to the office to meet Nazar and the leaders,” it is suggested.
Although it is not clear who “Nazar” and the anonymous “leaders” are, or why they are in an office at the border, the information is misleading and misrepresents the recruitment process of the International Legion.
The International Legion is legally and officially part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and has a well-established application process, which begins with thorough background checks prior to arrival in Ukraine.
Potential recruits must also come from a military background and have received appropriate training and clearances, contrary to Mr. Routh’s claim that they are “all ages and skill levels.”
Once accepted, recruits are not mercenaries, but legal AFU military personnel, like all other Ukrainians and non-citizens. Their recruitment is not an ad hoc decision taken on the spot upon their arrival.
The website associated with Routh continues with step-by-step instructions: “They will check your passport and phone to make sure you are not Russian. If you are accepted, you go directly to a nearby base and train.”
In reality, membership in the International Legion does not work this way. The International Legion and other authorities examine the formal aspects of the application and notify the candidate if recruited. Only then are they sent to the appropriate units.
According to the official website of the International Legion, individual units then review the file and provide feedback.
“If a unit selects you, you will be informed how to contact them directly for a final interview with one of your future commanders or a unit recruiter,” the Legion says, noting that the preparatory process, in its earliest phase, takes at least three weeks before the trip.
Additionally, the website associated with Routh contained the following warning: “Do not call your home country’s embassy to ask for permission to join the fight, just take a plane and come to Ukraine to join us.”
On February 28, 2022, four days after the start of the Russian invasion, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree establishing a visa-free regime for foreigners willing to help protect Ukraine from Russian aggression during martial law.
However, his warning to potential recruits not to contact or inform the embassy has nothing to do with the International Legion’s official recruitment process and runs counter to the national rules of a number of countries that prohibit their citizens from participating in foreign wars.
Meanwhile, the International Legion has refuted all allegations of Mr. Routh’s involvement, telling Euronews that Mr. Routh was never a member of the International Legion, was never associated with it or was never linked to it in any capacity whatsoever.
“Any claim or suggestion to the contrary is completely inaccurate,” the statement added.
What was Routh doing in Ukraine?
Following Sunday’s incident, the media rushed to highlight Mr Routh’s public statements in support of Ukraine.
He has since been identified as attending several pro-Ukraine rallies in Kyiv, including an Azov Brigade event in 2022, prompting a response from the military unit denying any connection to Mr Routh.
“We want to state on the record that Ryan Wesley Routh has no connection to Azov and has never had any connection to Azov,” the unit said in a statement on X.
“We believe that The spread of the story about the possible link between Azov and Ryan Wesley Routh plays into the hands of Russian propaganda and discredits the 12th Azov Special Forces Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine and the security and defense forces of Ukraine in general,” the statement added.
Mr. Routh reportedly told The New York Times in 2023 that he wanted to help Kyiv repel Moscow’s aggression and that he had traveled to Ukraine just after the war began to help recruit Afghan soldiers who had fled the Taliban two years earlier.
Mr. Routh said dozens of soldiers had expressed interest and he was trying to transfer them from Pakistan and Iran to Ukraine.
However, it is unclear whether Mr Routh has managed to bring foreign volunteers to Ukraine since he made his statements.
A Facebook post in July suggests that he was still actively trying to recruit foreign soldiers for Ukraine’s cause over the summer, but was unable to obtain the necessary permission.
“Soldiers, please don’t call me,” he said on the social media platform. “We are still trying to get Ukraine to accept Afghan soldiers and we hope to have answers in the coming months… please be patient.”