The West has been providing Ukraine with military aid in various forms, from Leopard tanks coming from Germany to Patriot missiles from the US. To use the equipment, Ukrainian soldiers have been scrambling to learn how to operate them in a few short weeks. However, a stumbling block for many is the soldiers’ minimum grasp of English.
Step in English teacher Olena Chekryzhova, who up to now has been on a more traditional, school-based career. She has spent five months at a frontline battle station in the eastern Donetsk area teaching her countrymen to understand the English of combat manuals, reports Agence-France-Presse.
“Some people think I’m crazy,” she told AFP from Kyiv where she is currently stationed. “I think that teaching English in this case is the small contribution that I can do for my country, for the people of my country and for the military who are protecting us from this terrorist attack.”
