A group of Ukrainian Army soldiers injured by grenades and mortar shells in Ukraine arrived at a hospital recently in need of surgery. It seems like a common scene from the war in Ukraine, but most of the wounded are American soldiers, and the hospital is the US Army’s flagship medical centre in Germany, according to The New York Times.
Medics are treating wounded Americans and other fighters evacuated from Ukraine at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. However, while the number of patients at the hospital is still quite small – currently 14 – it’s a notable new step in deepening U.S. involvement in the military conflict.
Since hostilities began in 2022, hundreds of Americans – many of them military veterans – have travelled to Ukraine. A year and a half later, perhaps a few hundred are still there, having signed up with the Ukrainian national army or joined local militias.
Several of them received gunshot, artillery, mine or other injuries during the fighting. About 20 people are listed as dead. Most of the wounded are seeking help from scattered Ukrainian hospitals and Western charities. However, Washington is now offering them the same care it gives to American active-duty troops.
The Pentagon said in its statement that the Landstuhl Hospital was eligible under the Defence Ministry’s policy, which came into effect last summer. The hospital can treat up to 18 wounded Ukrainian servicemen at a time. The fact that most of the Ukrainian troops in Landstuhl are Americans is quite telling in drawing attention to the unexpected course of the war.
At the beginning of the war, the American authorities assured that they would not bring their troops into Ukraine and warned Americans against taking part in it. Now it is itself treating those it asked to stay away.
Marcy Sanchez, a spokesman for the hospital, said all of the wounded fighters were in good condition, but did not give any details about the patients.
Responding to a question from The New York Times, a Defence Department official responsible for information on Ukraine and Russia expressed surprise and said Pentagon officials had no information about Landstuhl regularly treating wounded American volunteers, but added that the leaders were not concerned about it.
An anonymous government source noted that while the administration strongly discourages American citizens from going to fight in Ukraine, apparently some will go anyway, and if they are injured and end up in Landstuhl, the government will not turn them away.
The 65-bed Level II Trauma Centre is the largest U.S. military hospital located outside the United States. For many years, the centre was a staging point for thousands of wounded American soldiers evacuated from Iraq and Afghanistan. However, after the end of these wars, the expertise of the Landstuhl Hospital remained untapped for a long time.
Several members of Congress, including Representative Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat, note the need to open a hospital for wounded Ukrainians. Mr. Crow, a former Army Ranger, said in an interview:
It’s an obvious way to help. Landstuhl is one of the pre-eminent medical facilities in the military. The doctors and nurses there have unique capabilities to treat battlefield wounds.
He notes that helping only 18 wounded at a time is too limited, and the U.S. military should do more.
Mostly patients from the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Great Britain and Ukraine are now staying at Landstuhl. In telephone interviews, they say that they receive excellent care and all necessary treatment. The US veteran, who underwent surgery to remove shrapnel from his arm and both legs in hospital this month, notes:
We’re blessed to be here.
He and his fellow soldiers from a company of English-speaking fighters were storming a village on the outskirts of Donetsk. The shelling wounded more than two dozen soldiers and killed two. Over the next few days, the wounded were moved through Ukrainian evacuation centres and hospitals, first near the front line and then in the capital, Kyiv.
Fighters noted that Ukrainian hospitals were under tremendous strain and that medical care was substandard due to outdated medical equipment. According to them, wound care was of poor quality, sanitation and antibiotics were not up to American standards, and surgery was only performed in the most critical cases. The Air Force veteran recalled:
I was evacuated in a wheelbarrow. I woke up during surgery because I didn’t get enough anesthesia. The Ukrainians, they do the best they can, but there are so many wounded.
He notes when he arrived at Landstuhl, some of his wounds had already been open for a fortnight. Surgeons quickly performed surgery to remove the rusty metal fragments left by the grenade. He notes the courteous and caring attitude of the hospital staff, with Landstuhl staff visiting him, asking how he was feeling, and offering him crackers. Another American veteran, who was hit by shrapnel in his legs, arm and neck, said:
Man, we are so thankful. I was wounded in Ukraine three weeks before they told me it would be a month before I got surgery. In Germany, they did it in two days.
Marcy Sanchez, a spokeswoman for the hospital, does not give specific details about the patients from Ukraine, but notes that they are all currently in good condition.
Until August, the hospital received almost no patients, despite the fact that Landstuhl has been authorised to treat wounded from Ukraine for more than a year. A former Green Beret medic David Bramlett began bringing in patients in the summer.
Mr Bramlett, who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, went to fight in Ukraine just after the fighting began last year. For several months, he led a small assault team on the front lines near Kharkiv and Izium. When shrapnel pierced his comrade’s eyes and brain, Mr Bramlett said, he realised that American veterans had little of the support in Ukraine that they had counted on when they served in the US Army. He said in an interview from Kyiv:
The helicopter isn’t coming for evac. If you are wounded, it might be days before you get to a hospital in Kyiv. We were scrounging to find care.
In December, Mr Bramlett ended his involvement in the war and began working for the R.T. Weatherman Foundation, which provides humanitarian aid and helps bring home wounded Americans and the remains of those killed in combat.
He notes that he had been trying for months to find civilian hospitals in Europe that could accept the wounded. In August, after more than two dozen foreign volunteer fighters were injured, he sought help from a European governmental organisation called the Multinational Medical Coordination Centre. He hoped the centre would help find civilian hospital beds for the wounded, but instead was advised to send patients to Landstuhl. He said:
It was one of the best days I’ve ever had in Ukraine.
The foundation soon paid for ambulances that picked up the patients and transported them to a hospital near the French border. Since then, three more groups of injured people have joined them.
Mr Sanchez, a spokesman for Landstuhl Hospital, says the hospital can accommodate a large number of injured and “remains postured and ready to support U.S. Armed Forces, NATO member countries and other allies and partners as directed.”
According to Mr Bramlett, there is a benefit for all parties: US military doctors gain experience in treating complex injuries that the US military may face in a future conflict, and the wounded receive top-notch care. However, this agreement poses some risks. Russia has repeatedly warned that any increased US involvement could provoke a larger war, and the operation of this hospital could be seen as another step of US involvement in the war in Ukraine.
However, William B. Taylor, U.S. ambassador to Ukraine during the Bush and Obama administrations and chargé d’affaires during the Trump administration, believes fears about Russia’s reaction may be exaggerated.
According to Mr Taylor, the United States has repeatedly crossed so-called “red lines” over the past year by providing Ukraine with rocket artillery, tanks and pilot training, and Russia has not responded by escalating the conflict. He notes that taking care of the few wounded U.S. soldiers is unlikely to be a tipping point. He said:
Big picture, it’s in our interest for Ukraine to win. To achieve that, we should be doing whatever we can. Part of that is weapons. Part of that is financial support. And part of that is taking care of wounded.
