Mark Lindquist had plans to enter the political arena in 2022. He was one of several DFL candidates challenging Michelle Fischbach in Minnesota’s District 7 Congressional race. However, plans change.
While Lindquist, who is a U.S. Air Force veteran, may ultimately stay in the race as an independent, he first is hoping to head to Ukraine and join in the fight against Russia.
“I'm a kid who started out life in an orphanage in Seoul, South Korea, and was fortunate enough to be chosen for adoption and then brought to rural Minnesota, Ortonville, Minnesota out west,” Lindquist told WCCO’s Paul and Jordana Show. “That's where I grew up, in the Lindquist family. They adopted me at age eight months.”
Lindquist says he feels called to aid in Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion.
“I was able to serve the country in America, to serve the country in the Air Force and now we see what's happening on the other side of the planet and yet another call of service has been issued to all the veterans worldwide to form a foreign legion. And it just seems like a call that I need to answer.”
He adds that it was Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky who inspired him to volunteer.
“To a service member, to us 18 million veterans that heard President Zelensky issue this call, the first time that a foreign legion has been formed in 80 years, is certainly significant,” Lindquist explains.
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The logistics surrounding how an American vet volunteers in a foreign country is a bit different of course. Lindquist says he has been in touch with the Ukrainian Embassy and other veterans already over there.
“You apply to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense at the Ukrainian Embassy and then they'll do in processing interview with you to determine whether you have the requisite experience,” Lindquist told WCCO. Whether you'll be in the way or whether you'll be an asset, and then if you're approved for entering into their territorial defense, their foreign legion, you’re then told to report somewhere on the border for in processing. In the meantime, I'm just going to conduct as many humanitarian missions at the border as I can. I've been in coordination with many veterans over there already.”
Lindquist also added that Ukraine is looking for very experienced soldiers to join in the fight, soldiers that will not need training.
“They're looking for combat experience,” Lindquist said. “They're looking for people who would not need extra training, folks that are infantry, folks that are (Army) Rangers, folks that are of the infantry, ilk. All I'm hearing is that if you have said experience then some are being accepted and if you don't, you can certainly serve in other ways. But I just knew that I couldn't live in a world where nobody came to the defense of Ukraine.”
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Lindquist, in explaining his reasoning for fighting for Ukraine, says that as a veteran he believes freedom is a right of all people, whether they’re American or Ukrainian.
“Veterans were made for a moment like this and I just I just think a lot of us, veterans and veterans friends that I've been talking to nonstop since this conflict kicked off, we're all asking ourselves what's the most we could do,” Lindquist says. “And for me, I don't want to live in a world where we as Americans, as freedom-loving people, watch one nation take over another sovereign nation.”
Lindquist expects to be in Warsaw, Poland in the next week to ten days.
“I'm using the freedom that's available to me as an American. And I'm using that freedom to go extend myself in service of others who are in need of help. You don't know how you can help until you get there. So I just I got to go. I got to go see how I can help.”
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