‘I told my wife I’d like to go to Ukraine to see what I could do’ – Irishman helping to evacuate citizens from conflict zone

Shortly after he finished up with the Defence Forces in 2020 he worked for a private medical company that provided services for military personnel observing the ceasefire between Ukrainians and Russian separatists in the Donbas region of Ukraine.

Since his return to Ukraine, he has been working with an entity comprised of ex-western military specialists called The Mozart Group, which Brennan says is a strictly non-combatant outfit.

Despite not firing a shot in the conflict, Mozart has been held up as rivals of the pro-Moscow, shadowy mercenary group Wagner.

According to Brennan, the faux comparison between the two has resulted in “a price being placed on our heads and us being deliberately targeted by Wagner and the Russian forces”.

Brennan started off instructing Ukrainian recruits on how to provide medical care to troops injured in battle. His role later shifted when he was made head of Mozart’s evacuation team, which is “exactly what I want to do”.

On an almost daily basis his team evacuates civilians who inadvertently find themselves caught up in the bloody conflict’s constantly shifting front in the Russian-speaking east of Ukraine.

He said when Russia invaded it was obvious to him it was going to be a difficult war.

“You could see what Russia was going to do, you could see they were targeting infrastructure, civilians, everything,” he said. “So I told my wife I would like to go back to see what I could do, to see if I had anything to offer from a medical or military perspective. I really wanted to go back as this was just a disaster happening.

“She agreed to let me go but told me that she was not happy about it, which was alright. My aim was not to go over to kill Russians, I wanted to go over and help.”

The Co Offaly native found Mozart, made up of former western military special forces, on the internet and liked what they were about — providing training, and basically anything that can help the Ukrainian military “to win the fight and stay alive”.

After considering his experience, Mozart’s founder, retired US Marine Colonel Andy Milburn, hired him to teach Ukrainians how to deal with trauma on the battlefield.

“Typically, Mozart has two units training the Ukrainians and one unit involved in evacuating civilians away from the front,” Brennan said.

His evacuation team has built up a reputation for “always trying to get in and try even if we have to wait for gaps in the shelling”.

As well as helping rescue civilians, his team distributes aid from other groups in areas where “other organisations won’t operate”.

“We have also gone into areas to get to dead bodies,” he said.​

They don’t carry weapons, despite the obvious peril of working near the front where shellfire is “everybody’s enemy”. Carrying weapons would “muddy the waters” and would “allow the Russians say that we are combatants”.

“Anyway, carrying weapons isn’t much use to us, as the main danger comes from artillery fire. We are not a PCM [private military contractor], we are basically a volunteer organisation. We are completely dependent on donors. There is no money coming in from any government, no matter what the Russians will tell you.”

His team will “go to the front door of civilians’ homes that are just a few hundred metres from the front line”.

“In urban areas the lines can shift very quickly. The taking of one or two buildings can change the line of fire dramatically.

“Half the battle is not getting through to those in danger, but rather trying to convince people, particularly older people, to leave what has been the only home they have ever known. It is surprising how many won’t leave.”

Some go relatively quickly, but others only think about leaving at the last possible minute.

“When an area starts to get shelled you get a call saying that people are ready to go and have their stuff packed, and we shuttle them out.”

All Brennan’s team can offer is a guarantee they will be moved somewhere safe. His team brings evacuees to drop-off centres, where they get a bed and some food, for a short period.

“People just don’t realise how bad it is” regarding the widescale destruction of residential buildings. The Russians “will hit anything” and “their mindset is just to flatten and clear an entire area”.

“They want to cause chaos and tie up resources to get the Ukrainian people to end the war quicker,” Brennan said. ​

“We [Mozart] are just trying to help people in a really bad situation and get them out of immediate danger. It’s a huge responsibility on us, but we need to do this.”

After a stint at home Brennan, who greatly admires the Ukrainian resolve and “stubbornness”, has returned to the conflict zone. The Ukrainians, he believes, have the advantage on the battlefield against the Russian troops.

As the conflict enters its second year, he does not know when it will end. A lot depends on what Vladimir Putin does and how long he remains in situ. For now Brennan and his team will continue to put their necks on the line for the ordinary people of Ukraine.