Russian media broadcasts messages from captured U.S. military veterans


Russian news outlet RT broadcast messages on Friday from Alex Drueke and Andy Huynh, two U.S. military veterans from Alabama who traveled to Ukraine to help defend the country against Russia's invasion, Fox News reported.
The two have been missing since last week.
"Mom, I just want to let you know that I'm alive and I hope to be back home as soon as I can be," Drueke said. He also advised veterans like him not to travel to Ukraine.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Huynh told RT that he saw "a lot of corruption" in Ukraine. "Watching the propaganda from the West, it says how glorious all Ukraine is, and when I came here I saw how not true that was," he said.
The two veterans reportedly surrendered to a Russian patrol after being separated from their group and are being held by Russian-backed separatist forces. Drueke and Huynh had been fighting alongside Ukrainian troops north of Kharkiv.
According to Fox, Drueke's aunt, Dianna Shaw, "said the video recording included a secret word and gesture" they had arranged, "verifying his identity and letting her know he was OK."
A third American veteran, Grady Kurpasi, is also missing in action in Ukraine.
"We don't know where they are, but I want to reiterate: Americans should not be going to Ukraine now," President Biden said Friday.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
5 weather-beaten cartoons about the Texas floods
Cartoons Artists take on funding cuts, politicizing tragedy, and more
-
What has the Dalai Lama achieved?
The Explainer Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader has just turned 90, and he has been clarifying his reincarnation plans
-
Europe's heatwave: the new front line of climate change
In the Spotlight How will the continent adapt to 'bearing the brunt of climate change'?
-
Ottawa Treaty: why are Russia's neighbours leaving anti-landmine agreement?
Today's Big Question Ukraine to follow Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia as Nato looks to build a new ‘Iron Curtain' of millions of landmines
-
How drone warfare works
The Explainer From Ukraine to Iran, it has become clear that unmanned aircraft are rapidly revolutionising modern warfare
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap
-
How far would Russia go for Iran?
Today's Big Question US air strikes represent an 'embarrassment, provocation and opportunity' all rolled into one for Vladimir Putin
-
Are the UK and Russia already at war?
Today's Big Question Moscow has long been on a 'menacing' war footing with London, says leading UK defence adviser
-
Is UK's new defence plan transformational or too little, too late?
Today's Big Question Labour's 10-year strategy 'an exercise in tightly bounded ambition' already 'overshadowed by a row over money'
-
How will the MoD's new cyber command unit work?
Today's Big Question Defence secretary outlines plans to combat 'intensifying' threat of cyberattacks from hostile states such as Russia
-
What are the different types of nuclear weapons?
The Explainer Speculation mounts that post-war taboo on nuclear weapons could soon be shattered by use of 'battlefield' missiles