German military training staff preparing some 1,000 Ukrainian troops how to use Western tanks and arms will soon be aided by several hundred specialists from other countries, as informed by the head of the Special Training Command.
“We are talking about some 30-50 troops from Norway and several hundred from the Netherlands,” Lieutenant-General Andreas Marlow said in an interview.
“I hope we will be able to convince more partners to support us,” he added.
The Special Training Command (STC) is part of a European Union military mission set to train up to 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers in different skills to help them counter Russian aggression on the battlefield.
Today, the Chairman EU Military Committee, 🇦🇹 General Brieger, visited the Special Training Command of EUMAM UA led by 🇩🇪 With COM ST-C, Lieutenant General Marlow, they had a good discussion with Liaison Officer on the training provided as part of 🇪🇺EU support to Ukraine #EUMAM pic.twitter.com/p8nviN1Emo
— EUSecurityDefence (@EUSec_Defence) February 10, 2023
Training in various European countries covers simple military training but also modern battle tanks such as air defense systems, rocket launchers, and howitzers.
As for now, around 1,500 mostly German soldiers took care of the training in Germany, intending to train around 9,000 Ukrainians by the end of 2023, Gen. Marlow added.
Poland is also a major training hub. Other countries helping train Ukrainians are Spain, France, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, and Italy. The U.S. and British troops are contributing to the training of Ukrainian troops in Europe as well.
“We see tanks and infantry fighting vehicles as inseparable twins that go into battle together, with the support of others such as artillery, engineers, or air defense systems,” said Marlow.
“Only this mix creates the synergies that give us an advantage over someone who is using their troops without this kind of orchestration,” the General added.
General Marlow admitted he was impressed by the skills and commitment of the Ukrainian troops, whom he was able to meet in training.
“That gets to you when you see these young people training on a tank, on an infantry fighting vehicle that will head directly into battle – not like the artillery that fires at a distance,” he said.