Tragic last messages from Aussie tradie feared dead in Ukraine
Caleb List, 25, was reported missing last month after his unit came under artillery fire near the city of Izyum, in the Kharkiv region, which has been regularly bombarded by Russia since it launched its invasion three years ago.
A Ukrainian military source said it was 'unlikely' Mr List was alive and that it was 'almost impossible' to retrieve a body in the area at the moment. Ukrainian officials told NewsWire they could not comment on Mr List's fate without a body.
Mr List, who always wanted to be a soldier and was working at Queensland's Yarwun refinery before leaving for Ukraine, said he joined the Ukrainian war effort after being knocked back by the Australian Defence Force.
In encrypted messages sent in March weeks before he was reported missing, the 25-year-old – who would spend his time in Ukraine fighting on the frontline and then moving to the backline in a repeating 'cycle' – told the Daily Mail his family did not know he had returned to combat and was fighting on the front.
'I went back to the front again. I have some more scars, but I'm good living the dream,' he wrote.
'At the moment my parents think that I am studying over in Germany.
'I will tell them soon. But at the moment there are bigger family problems to deal with than my choice in profession.'
According to the publication, Mr List was taking part in his third stint of the job at the time of the messages.
The tradie said he was earning $3,900 per month with a 'combat bonus' of $2,698 for every 30 days spent on the frontline.
Mr List said he planned to stay in Ukraine until he was 'ready to leave'.
'Why I'm still here? It is not a fully easy question to answer,' he wrote.
'There are several things that make me stay here and choose to continue to serve under the Ukrainian Army.
'But it seems quite selfish to leave all my Ukrainian friends behind to deal with a war.'
In other messages, the tradie claimed living in a war zone was 'not as crazy as most people think'.
'There are scary moments and bad thing happen around Ukraine every day, but it's a normal country and it still has to operate like one.
'The only thing is there's a giant war in the background.'
Mr List told SBS in 2023 that he had previously 'tried a couple of attempts' to join the Australian Defence Force.
'For obvious reasons, I got rejected – just a bit young and dumb, made some bad choices,' he said.
'I wanted something new … I was sick of the job, I was sick of just being a labourer.'
Mr List also told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle he wanted to 'push myself to the extreme'.
'Deeply troubling'
Anthony Albanese said reports of Mr List's disappearance were 'deeply troubling' and urged Australians not to travel to Ukraine.
'My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of the gentlemen concerned,' the Prime Minister said on Wednesday.
'DFAT are working in the way that they do to make sure the proper notifications are occurring.'
Foreign Minister Penny Wong would not confirm on Wednesday what Australian officials knew about Mr List's status, citing privacy reasons.
'I'm always constrained in terms of these matters as a result of privacy,' she told the ABC.
'But, I would just simply say that this is a very dangerous place to be and … we are assisting, providing consular assistance to a family in relation to this matter.'
Senator Wong said she did not know how many Australians were in Ukraine.
'I don't have numbers on that,' she said.
'But I would say to people, I would strongly discourage that. We have a do-not-travel arrangement with Ukraine.
'I understand people feel strongly about this conflict, but this is not something the government would be supporting – that is, Australians joining fighting in Ukraine.'
Another Australian killed in Ukraine
Earlier this week, authorities confirmed another Australian, Nick Parsons, had been killed in the same area.
Mr Parsons, a former Australian soldier, was working for landmine clearance non-profit Prevail Together.
The Prime Minister publicly expressed his 'deepest condolences and sympathies' to Mr Parsons' family at a press conference on Monday.
'I can confirm he wasn't a participant in the conflict, he was volunteering with a humanitarian organisation,' he said.
'I do want to remind Australians that Ukraine is a do not travel zone. The situation is extremely dangerous and we continue to strongly advise all Australians not to travel to Ukraine, under any circumstances.'
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