90 Day Fiance star David Murphey takes his allegiance to Ukraine seriously and recently applied to become a foreign fighter in their war against Russia.
90 Day Fiance viewers first met David during Season 4 of Before the 90 Days while he was on his quest to meet Lana, his Ukrainian love interest. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out between David and Lana, despite getting engaged on the show. However, his ties to Ukraine remain strong.
90 Day Fiance star David Murphey applies to become foreign fighter in Ukraine
As Monsters and Critics previously reported, David told his fans in March, “I have applied to the Ukraine embassy to become a foreign fighter in Ukraine.”
Citing his experience with grenade, rifle, and special weapons training while serving in the U.S. Army, 61-year-old David felt he would be a good match.
During a special spinoff titled 90 Day Diaries: Ukraine, David talked in depth about his application with the Ukraine embassy.
While awaiting to hear back from the embassy, David prepared himself by starting up an exercise routine to get back in shape, hitting the gun range to sharpen his target practice, and purchasing thousands of dollars worth of gear.
“Ukraine is like my second home,” David told viewers of his close ties to the country. “I’ve talked to many friends who are over there, and it sickens me to see the destruction that’s going on in cities that I know very well. I will not sit back and watch Ukraine get destroyed.”
Later in the episode, despite all of his preparation, David received some discouraging news.
David ineligible to fight due to lack of combat experience
“Alright, it looks like I just got a response back from the Ukrainian embassy,” David told cameras as he opened his laptop to check his email.
The email read in part, “We received an update that currently, only people with combat experience can join the International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine.”
David was understandably upset with the news. “That, uh, that changes everything right now. You know, I wanna be there and help and now I can’t. But, you know, I can’t go if I don’t have combat experience. They’re not gonna let me in and I’m not gonna be one of those guys that goes across the border without authorization.”
David said that although he won’t be able to help the way he would have liked, he hopes to help via humanitarian aid and by helping his friends in Ukraine escape the country.
90 Day Diaries airs on Mondays at 9/8c on TLC and Discovery+.