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By Ellie Cook
Senior Defense Reporter
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A Ukrainian tribute to a U.S. volunteer killed in the destroyed eastern city of Bakhmut is "very touching," his sister has told Newsweek.
"It means a lot to see how the Ukrainian troops he worked with valued him so much," said Amanda Weishaar, the sister of former U.S. Army Special Forces soldier, Nick Maimer.
"He did give his life to support them so it is beautiful to see his sacrifice was appreciated and his life is being honored," Weishaar added.
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Maimer, a former Green Beret who spent more than 20 years in the military, died in the fiercely contested Donetsk city of Bakhmut in mid-May. He was killed during a combat deployment with the 135th Territorial Defense Battalion, Ukraine's 114th Territorial Defense Brigade said on Sunday.
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Maimer had been in a building that collapsed after it was hit by artillery fire, his friend, retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Perry Blackburn, previously told CNN.
In a video posted to Facebook on Sunday, the 114th paid tribute to Maimer, with footage showing a coffin covered in both the U.S. and Ukrainian flags.
"Brother in arms, today your body is already on the way to America, but your warrior spirit is with us forever," the brigade wrote in caption accompanying the footage.
"To give one's life is the greatest feat, but Nick's life was filled with small daily feats of self-sacrifice and service to a greater purpose," the brigade added.
Maimer, 45, had spent around a year in Ukraine as one of an unknown number of U.S. volunteers fighting against Russia.
His family did know there would be a tribute paid to the Boise native, Weishaar said, adding that her brother "got close to some of the guys when he was there."
"It is not unlike Nick to make an impact on most lives he was able to be a part of, no matter how long his time was with them," she added.
Weishaar previously told Newsweek that it had been "devastating" to see confirmation of her brother's death through graphic footage posted by Russian mercenary organization, the Wagner Group, on their social media channels.
The paramilitary outfit posted a video on May 16 in which Wagner leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, showed Maimer's identity documents to the camera in between shots of Maimer's body.
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Maimer's relatives were informed he had likely been killed in Bakhmut three days after he told his family he was heading into the embattled city, Weishaar said in June. Confirmation of his death came when his family saw the video, "and that was how we all kind of found out for sure that he had been killed," Weishaar said.
In the video, the Wagner Group appeared "pretty proud to have killed an American," Weishaar said. But the mercenaries, who were leading Russia's operations in Bakhmut at the time, "had no idea who Nick was as a person, and that he was there to just support people because he was a kind person."
After the video appeared online, the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War think tank said the footage "emphasizes Wagner's continual promotion of brutality and glorification of war."
"The video appeared to showcase Wagner gloating over the death of an American and amplified the graphic nature of his death," the ISW said at the time.
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