Dutch volunteers: We are not weary of Ukraine war

Dutch volunteers Franky van Hintum and Coen van Oosten, who after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began to actively help the embattled nation, emphasized that they are not weary of Ukraine and the ongoing war, and that they remain active in their humanitarian effort.

They spoke in an interview with an Ukrinform correspondent in The Hague.

"We get tired, because it's quite an emotional load, because it's hard after what we've seen, after the stories we've heard, and it's also hard physically. But we are not weary of Ukraine and the war. We saw firsthand what war is like. That incident in Kramatorsk only encouraged us to help even more actively," says Dutch volunteer Coen van Oosten.

This is about last June’s Russian missile strike on a Kramatorsk pizzeria that left 13 people killed, including four children.

"Indeed, we were indoors when that pizzeria was attacked with Iskander missiles. We were hurt, but lightly, just by shattered glass. A woman who died was sitting at the next table. But we survived. Then it felt like it was our second birthday. We were extremely lucky because the pizzeria consisted of three sections. The one where the missile landed was 12 meters away from us. We sat settled our check literally a minute before the explosion. I wanted to leave a tip, but I had UAH 500 in one bill. So we decided to give the lady those 500 hryvnias so that she would have a good day. We settled, gave her 500 hryvnias as a tip, and later found out that she was among those killed," recalls Dutch volunteer Franky van Hintum.

He also emphasized that the two are not tired of volunteering and helping Ukraine, "because we believe that this war is as important for us as it is for Ukraine. People underestimate what this war can become if it is not stopped. If Russia stops fighting, the war will end, and if Ukraine stops fighting, Ukraine will be gone. And then this will spill further, into other countries, like cancer. I am 100 percent sure. The Baltic States and Poland have their own experiences and can share with other countries."

It is worth noting that Dutch volunteers Franky van Hintum and Coen van Oosten feed people in Ukraine for free, even under fire. After a full-scale invasion, two friends from the Netherlands, owners of a mobile fast food truck, decided to help the Ukrainians. At first, they would prepare meals and distribute them for free on the Ukrainian-Polish border, then they began to serve French fries, sausages, and cheese souffle in the front-line areas. Together they visited many Ukrainian towns, including Izium, Kharkiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Pokrovsk, Sviatohirsk, and Kramatorsk.

The Dutch are helping the Ukrainian military, evacuating civilians, and have created a temporary shelter in Dnipro for civilians evacuated from hot spots. They also organize international vacations for Ukrainian children, and they also fight against Russian propaganda and fake news.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, in the Netherlands, volunteers from the Zeilen van Vrijheid foundation, a charitable organization that supports brave ER medics and hospital staff in Ukraine, sent another aid package – eight special ambulances.