From one of Australia’s wealthiest suburbs to the front lines of the Russian invasion: Heroic Aussie dad trapped in the path of Vladimir Putin’s tanks vows to do ‘whatever it takes’ for Ukraine
- Father from Mosman, Sydney found himself stuck in Ukraine as war broke out
- Ashley Meredith caught in crisis as he waited for son’s Australian passport
- Family now carrying out border runs at the Ukrainian border with Poland
- He and his wife have taken in 18 refugees fleeing Eastern European warzone
- ‘I am pushing the limit as far as I can but I don’t plan to die,’ Sydney father said
An Australian father from an exclusive Sydney suburb is helping Ukraine fight the Russian invasion after finding himself stuck in the war-torn country.
Deloitte management consultant Ashley Meredith, from Mosman on Sydney’s affluent lower north shore, is pledging to do anything he can to stop the Russians.
Mr Meredith and his wife Maryna were caught in the crisis as they waited for their three-year-old son Barrie’s Australian’s citizenship to be approved.
The Sydneysider initially moved his wife and son to a safe house when Russia invaded last week and then went to Kyiv to help those displaced by the conflict.
The family are now stationed at the Ukrainian border with Poland, where they are helping hundreds of refugees flee the war by carrying out ‘border runs’ in a van.
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Sydney father Ashley Meredith found himself stuck in Ukraine with his wife Maryna and three-year-old son Barrie and is now helping hundreds flee the country
Mr Meredith and his wife Maryna are now helping hundreds flee the war in the Eastern European country and have taken in 18 refugees
Mr Meredith, from Mosman on Sydney’s affluent lower north shore, was caught up in the crisis as he waited for his three-year-old son Barrie’s Australian’s citizenship to be approved
Mr Meredith, who has lived in Ukraine for seven years, said he and his wife had also taken in 18 refugees and vowed to do ‘whatever it takes’ to protect his family and the Ukrainian people.
‘The battle for Ukraine is on and the people will not be broken,’ he told the Mosman Collective.
‘As the husband of a Ukranian woman and father to a Ukranian-Australian child, I will do whatever it takes.
‘Rather than run I thought it was time to stay and help these people,’ he told The Project on Sunday.
‘I’ve been delivering power banks to soldiers on the front line and water to the elderly in the shelters. I speak Russian and Ukrainian so I’ve been trying to help where I can.’
Mr Meredith said he and his driver were armed with a gun to protect themselves and his family, but added he was not looking to directly fight the Russians.
‘I don’t think I would be rushing towards the front to fight the Russians,’ he said.
‘My family is my first priority and to die would be the worst result. I am pushing the limit as far as I can but I don’t plan to die and it’s not something I’ve talked about.’
Mr Meredith said he and his wife had taken in 18 refugees and are now stationed at the Polish border with Ukraine
Mr Meredith said he had been ‘delivering power banks to soldiers on the front line and water to the elderly in the shelters’ during the invasion
Now that his son has had his passport approved, the Sydney father said he eventually planned to reach the Australian Embassy in Denmark and then fly back to Sydney.
‘As soon as I get home I’m heading straight to Bathers Pavilion [on Balmoral Beach in Mosman],’ Mr Meredith said.
‘We just want to get home and cherish the safety of Australia.’
The father vowed to do ‘whatever it takes’ to protect his family and the Ukrainian people
One million Ukrainians are estimated to have fled their country already since the war broke out, according to the UN – with many making their way to temporary camps on the Polish border.
Australia is poised to welcome thousands of Ukrainian refugees; Prime Minister Scott Morrison said this week he is working on a temporary protection scheme similar to one deployed during the Kosovo War.
In April 1999, Australia created ‘safe haven’ visas for about 4,000 Kosovars. Nearly all of them stayed for less than a year and returned home when the war ended.
The captured city of Kherson, 300 miles south of Kyiv, is considered an important strategic asset, being on an inlet in the Black Sea
The evacuation comes as the first Ukrainian city fell to the Russians on Wednesday, with its mayor urging residents to obey ‘armed people who came to the city’s administration’.
The captured city, Kherson is home to 290,000 people and 300 miles south of Kyiv.
The city is strategically important, sitting on an inlet of the Black Sea 260 miles west of the separatist enclave of Donetsk.
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