Malaysian fighting for Ukraine’s army draws ire back home – ‘he forgets his own country’

News of a Malaysian man who signed up to fight with Ukraine’s army in its war against Russia has triggered criticisms back home after photos of his identification documents recovered at a battlefield went viral over the past week.

Photos of a Malaysian identity card and driving licence made their rounds on social media after Russian forces announced in mid-October they had captured the town of Levadne in Ukraine’s eastern region.

Malaysian authorities confirmed that the documents belonged to Malaysian Lee Bing Hang, 20, who had signed up as a mercenary with the Ukrainian army in April.

Lee, who grew up in Perlis state in the peninsula’s north, appeared to have dropped his identity card and driving licence after he was wounded in a drone attack, Malaysian police said. The Malaysian is alive and recovering well, according to the police.

“It is understood that Lee went to the United Kingdom in March before signing up for the Ukraine-Russia [war] and did not plan to return home,” police chief Razarudin Hussain was quoted as saying by national newswire Bernama on Tuesday.

Police said Lee, who dropped out of college earlier this year, was drawn to the promise of a US$2,700 monthly salary as a mercenary with the Ukrainian army.