More Ukrainian army recruits may receive basic training in Germany starting next year if Kyiv moves some military exercises back to Ukraine, said Lieutenant General Andreas Marlow, head of the EU Special Training Command near Berlin, UNN reports citing Reuters.
We have received more requests for training as Ukraine continues to mobilize, in particular for basic training, which is mostly provided by the UK
According to him, this is likely to affect the collective training - involving entire companies or battalions - that has been conducted in Germany so far, which follows basic training.
According to the lieutenant general, Kyiv is seeking to conduct more training on its own to simplify logistics and allow troops to be at the front in a shorter time. It is noted that Spain conducts some training for Ukrainian troops, as does Poland.
The Marlowe Special Training Command (STC) is part of a European Union military mission established in 2022 to train about 60,000 Ukrainian military personnel in various skills by mid-November 2024.
In Germany, instructors from 14 countries are teaching soldiers how to operate tanks and Patriot and IRIS-T air defense systems, snipers, engineers, paramedics and drone operators are mastering their professions, and IT experts are learning how to counter hackers.
Чехія підготує 4 тисячі українських солдатів на своїй території09.06.24, 02:15
Marlowe said he does not expect such specialized training to be transferred to Ukraine, as it requires weapons and certain infrastructure, such as simulators.
According to him, Kyiv hopes to move collective training to the homeland, partly because it is easier for Ukrainians to teach operational doctrine, but also to speed up the deployment of new troops.
"Kyiv will have troops ready for use much faster than if they were trained in Germany or Spain," he said.