zh, labels=no, t=曾煜閎 (

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on Facebook) , image = , birth_date = , birth_place =

Ji'an Ji'an ( zh, c=吉安 , p=Jí'ān) is a prefecture-level city situated in the central region of Jiangxi province of the People's Republic of China and bordering Hunan province to the west. It has an area of and as of the 2020 census, had a popu ...

, Hualien,

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, death_date = , death_cause =

Mortar Mortar may refer to: * Mortar (weapon), an indirect-fire infantry weapon * Mortar (masonry), a material used to fill the gaps between blocks and bind them together * Mortar and pestle, a tool pair used to crush or grind * Mortar, Bihar, a village i ...

attack , death_place =

Kreminna Kreminna (, ) is a city in Sievierodonetsk Raion, Luhansk Oblast, eastern Ukraine. Prior to 2020, it served as the administrative center of former Kreminna Raion. Its population was estimated at as of January 2022. Following the Russian invasio ...

Luhansk Oblast Luhansk Oblast (; ), also referred to as Luhanshchyna (), is the easternmost Administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Luhansk. The oblast was established in 1938 and bore the n ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

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Order for Courage The Order for Courage () is a Ukrainian award established by Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma on August 21, 1996. Design by Ukrainian artist Mykola Lebid. Awards of the President of Ukraine for Courage Before August, 1996, personal bravery ha ...

of the third class (

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

) Tseng Sheng-guang ( Amis: Sincyang Diway; zh, t=曾聖光; September 12, 1997 – November 2, 2022), also known as Jonathan Tseng, was a Taiwanese army veteran who volunteered to join the International Legion of Territorial Defence of Ukraine and was the first soldier from East Asia to be killed in action during the

Russo-Ukrainian War The Russo-Ukrainian War began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia Russian occupation of Crimea, occupied and Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, annexed Crimea from Ukraine. It then ...

Early life and education

Tseng was born in a Taiwanese indigenous family of the

Sakizaya Sakizaya may refer to: * Sakizaya language, a Formosan language * Sakizaya people The Sakizaya (native name: Sakuzaya, literally "real man"; ; occasionally Sakiraya or Sakidaya) are Taiwanese indigenous peoples with a population of approximately ...

ethnic group in the

Hualien County Hualien () is a County (Taiwan), county on the east coast of Taiwan. It is Taiwan's largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous terrain, has one of the lowest populations in the country. The county seat and largest city is Hualien City. Hu ...

in East Taiwan – an ancient

Austronesian Austronesian may refer to: *The Austronesian languages *The historical Austronesian peoples The Austronesian people, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples who have settled in Taiwan, maritime Sout ...

nation of six tribes which been massacred to almost extinction by the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

expedition army. The last Sakizayan survivors after the racial cleansing through the

Huadong Valley The Huadong Valley or Hualien–Taitung Valley (), also known as East Rift Valley, the Longitudinal Valley or as the during the era of Japanese rule, is a long and narrow valley located between the Central Mountain Range and the Coastal Mount ...

took refuge into the highland Amis tribes in the Hai"an

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

for 129 years until the extended population of hundreds of people received official recognition to recover their ethnic status in 2007. Later, Tseng's parents immigrated to

Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...

but divorced, and his mother brought him back to Taiwan. When he returned to Taiwan, he learned English, Spanish, Amis and

Taiwanese Mandarin Taiwanese Mandarin, frequently referred to as ''Guoyu'' () or ''Huayu'' (), is the variety of Mandarin Chinese spoken in Taiwan. A large majority of the Taiwanese population is fluent in Mandarin, though many also speak a variety of Min Chinese ...

, and represented his local high school to participate in an English competition where he won second place.

Military career

Tseng joined the army in 2016 after high school graduation, and served 5 years in an armoured battalion and in the 2nd Logistics Department of the Huadong Defense Command, achieving the rank of

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

, and was honorably discharged in 2021. On June 19, 2022, Tseng joined the International Legion of Territorial Defence of Ukraine to fight against the Russian invasion, and in the beginning of September, entered the Carpathian Sich Battalion, an earlier

Special Tasks Patrol Police The Special Police Forces () is a Ukrainian volunteer corps of law enforcement units, part of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. History In April 2014, Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov issued an order to create battali ...

company of the

Ministry of Internal Affairs An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the i ...

that had been reformed in May as the 49th Infantry Battalion in the

Armed Forces of Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) are the Military, military forces of Ukraine. All military and security forces, including the Armed Forces, are under the command of the president of Ukraine and subject to oversight by a permanent Verkhovna Rad ...

. The unit participated in the counteroffensive operations of the

Eastern Ukraine campaign Ukraine's easternmost oblasts, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kharkiv, have been the site of an ongoing theatre of operation since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The battle of Donbas was a major offensive in the easter ...

and stood on the forefront to provide

flanking maneuver In military tactics, a flanking maneuver is a movement of an armed force around an enemy force's side, or flank, to achieve an advantageous position over it. Flanking is useful because a force's fighting strength is typically concentrated ...

support in the battle of Donbas to recover the strategical cities as Russian logistics transmission centers of

Izium Izium or Izyum (, ; ) is a city on the Donets River in Kharkiv Oblast, eastern Ukraine that serves as the administrative center of Izium Raion and Izium urban hromada. It is about southeast of the city of Kharkiv, the oblast's administrative cen ...

and Lyman, where massive graves were uncovered. The Carpathian Sich Battalion went on to secure more settlements and a series of

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

s in the northern

Donetsk Oblast Donetsk Oblast, also referred to as Donechchyna (, ), is an Oblasts of Ukraine, oblast in eastern Ukraine. It is Ukraine's most populous province, with around 4.1 million residents. Its capital city, administrative centre is Donetsk, though d ...

by October 3. On October 23, Tseng's

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troo ...

was assigned from Terny in the Lyman direction of the

in the

, and took out three positions in the following days, then held the frontline awaiting the main force for nine days. On November 1, air-strikes hit the troopers and Tseng hard with

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include headache, dizziness, difficulty with thinking and concentration, sleep disturbances, a brief ...

; after covering three colleagues to retreat under the Russian

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

and

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

siege next day, Tseng suffered from a

head injury A head injury is any injury that results in trauma to the skull or brain. The terms ''traumatic brain injury'' and ''head injury'' are often used interchangeably in the medical literature. Because head injuries cover such a broad scope of inju ...

and a broken left leg by a

mortar Mortar may refer to: * Mortar (weapon), an indirect-fire infantry weapon * Mortar (masonry), a material used to fill the gaps between blocks and bind them together * Mortar and pestle, a tool pair used to crush or grind * Mortar, Bihar, a village i ...

bombardment, then died of bleeding, becoming the first

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

n soldier to be

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

in the war, Tseng's teammate,

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

sniper A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with telescopic si ...

Trevor Kjeldal (dubbed "Ninja"), also was killed in action by a

attack in the same battle. A friend of Tseng, a Japanese volunteer in the Ukrainian Foreign Legion and a colleague in the 49th Infantry Battalion, nicknamed posted Tseng's pictures online in lament, stating: "Be my friend in next life" who was later killed in action too on November 9.

Ukrainian Parliament The Verkhovna Rada ( ; VR), officially the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is the unicameral parliament of Ukraine. It consists of 450 deputies presided over by a speaker. The Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovna Rada building in Ukraine's capi ...

Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Oleksandr Merezhko, Deputy Battalion commander Ruslan Andriyko, and Tseng's American troop leader nicknamed as "Boris", paid tribute to Tseng and Taiwan. Tseng’s mother comforted: "Knowing that, in the last moments of his life, Sheng-guang was fighting alongside a group of the bravest warriors, that they supported each other and were together in life and death… I find a lot of consolation."

Personal life

Tseng was born

baptised Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

with a

Protestant Christian Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes justification of sinners through faith alone, the teaching that salvation comes by unmerited divine grace, the priesthood of all believers, and the Bible as the sole infallible sourc ...

family and was associated with the

Presbyterian Church in Taiwan The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT; ) is the largest Protestant Christian denomination based in Taiwan. The PCT is a member of the World Council of Churches, and its flag features a "burning bush", which signifies the concept of burning y ...

, whereas the

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

had serviced the remote countryside and highland villages for over 150 years since 1865, throughout his life. He was married, and fathered one child. His widowed wife is currently working in Taoyuan. He paid attention to the ROC military reform issues, and shared the publicized analyses of other professional commentators, including that the

Han Kuang Exercise The Han Kuang Exercise () is the annual military exercise of the Republic of China Armed Forces in Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu Islands, Matsu for combat readiness in the event of an attack from the People's Liberation Army of the People's Re ...

s had become "acting shows", that were not practical in line with actual operations; the four-month conscription service was too short and should be upgraded to one year; and traditional Huangpu ideology, bayonet fighting technique,

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

strategies, etc. were hindering Taiwanese military reforms; and considered that "the

Civil defense Civil defense or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from human-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency management: Risk management, prevention, mitigation, prepara ...

system, the reserve mobilization system, the

disaster response Disaster response refers to the actions taken directly before, during, or immediately after a disaster. The objective is to save lives, ensure health and safety, and meet the subsistence needs of the people affected.UNGA (2016)Report of the open- ...

capability, and the

strategic material Strategic material is any sort of raw material that is important to an individual's or organization's strategic plan and supply chain management. Lack of supply of strategic materials may leave an organization or government vulnerable to disrup ...

reserves are immature and some even non-existent..." During the Chinese military exercises around Taiwan in August, Tseng considered to return from Ukraine to re-join the Taiwanese military, ultimately remaining in Ukraine. In response to Chinese nationalist netizens criticising to his

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

account as a "damn Taiwanese independence supporter", he replied: "I am a Taiwanese, not a

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

." Shortly after Tseng's death news revealed, a document was posted online showing unpaid credit card debts and bills summed up to NT$ 1 million dollars (approximately $32,500

US dollar The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

s), and sparked doubt on his actual motive to go to Ukraine. His Taiwanese church chaplain, clergies and Ukrainian officials explained that "his true intention was based on the sense of justice with no desire of heroism, but hearing the call to protect the innocent civilians from brutality and life danger, and telling Taiwan: 'the war was never too far from us', but 'let justice roll on like a river, and righteousness like a never-failing stream!'" ( Amos 5:24) Ukrainian Parliamentarian Inna Sovsun saw Tseng as a Ukrainian soldier, stating that Tseng "had a sense of duty for freedom. For four years, he prepared to defend his motherland from Chinese invaders, but he went to defend a foreign country, which faced the same threat as his."

Aftermath

On November 11, 2022, an amateur Taiwanese "Fun Chi Band" ( zh, labels=no, t=放志樂團) of 6 members released a MV song to commemorate Tseng's spirit fighting for the democracy and freedom in Ukraine. In the farewell ceremony held at the Saints Peter and Paul Garrison Church in

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

on November 15, Tseng's family received the honour of a Ukrainian national flag with a medal, his battalion emblem and wearing Ukraine-Taiwan-united armband, along with a Russian

bayonet A bayonet (from Old French , now spelt ) is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... , now spelt ) is a knife, dagger">knife">-4; we might wonder whethe ...

in recognition of his sacrifice. Tseng was cremated, and his ashes returned to Taiwan. On December 4, ROC Minister of Council of Indigenous Peoples,

Icyang Parod Icyang Parod (; Chinese name: ; born 2 December 1960) is a Taiwanese Amis politician. He served as the Minister of the Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP) from 2007 to 2008 and took office again in 2016. Education and activism Icyang was a lead ...

, awarded them the top indigenous honor, First-class Professional Medal, posthumously. On Christmas, held a memorial concert for Tseng, quoting President J. F. Kennedy's address to be active citizens: "Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country", in the Paper Church (built with Japanese donation after

1999 Jiji earthquake The Chi-Chi earthquake (later also known as the Jiji earthquake, 921 Earthquake, or the great earthquake of September 21), was a 7.3 Richter magnitude scale, ML or 7.7 Moment magnitude scale, Mw earthquake which occurred in Jiji, Nanto ...

) in

Puli, Nantou Puli Township () is an township (Taiwan), urban township in Nantou County, Taiwan. The township is located within the Puli Basin. It is the geographic center of Taiwan. Name In the 19th century the city was known as Posia () or Po-li-sia (). ...

. Tseng's family also donated all the retrieved Tseng's items from Ukraine to the

National Museum of Taiwan History The National Museum of Taiwan History (NMTH; ) is a museum in Annan District, Tainan, Taiwan, covering the history of the island nation of Taiwan and its associated islands. History The museum was originally planned to be opened in 2008, but i ...

Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a Special municipality (Taiwan), special municipality in southern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and commonly called the "Taiwan Prefecture, ...

(Ancient capital of Tungning Kingdom) for public exhibition. On April 10, 2023, the

Anonymous Anonymous may refer to: * Anonymity, the state of an individual's identity, or personally identifiable information, being publicly unknown ** Anonymous work, a work of art or literature that has an unnamed or unknown creator or author * Anonym ...

hacking group defaced a Russian website that solicits donations for law enforcement organizations where they uploaded a memorial to Tseng Sheng-guang. Besides that, the hacking collective argued that the "firsts" achieved by the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

during the

Space Race The Space Race (, ) was a 20th-century competition between the Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between t ...

were exaggerated and were far surpassed by U.S. accomplishments. On April 28,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...

issued the No. 246 Decree awarding the

of the third class to nineteen

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

s and soldiers, including Tseng and Kjeldal, for their self-sacrificing performance in military duty.

Sheng-guang Project

On 9 November 2023, ROC Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the "Sheng-guang Project" to continue the humanitarian aids of civil society donations in cooperative initiatives with East European states to assist Ukrainian refugees, medical, transport and power system reconstruction need. A logo of "Taiwan Stands Up for Freedom" in three languages under Tseng's Sakizaya nation totem circled with the defense bamboos of their last stand at ''Takubuwa a kawaw'' in 1878 was designed to integrate the future support efforts.

External links

*
Carpathian Sich Youtube channel

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tseng, Sheng-guang 1997 births 2022 deaths People from Hualien County International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine personnel Military personnel of the Republic of China Pro-Ukraine foreign volunteers killed in the Russian invasion of Ukraine Recipients of the Order For Courage, 3rd class Amis people Sakizaya people Taiwanese Presbyterians