Another 10,000 fighters
Bundeswehr doubles number of trained Ukrainian soldiers
January 31, 2024, 2:06 p.m
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After the USA, Germany is Ukraine’s largest supporter and provides half of the aid from Europe. In addition, the Bundeswehr trained a quarter of the approximately 40,000 Ukrainian soldiers as part of the EU mission. Now another 10,000 Ukrainians are to be trained on the weapon systems.
Germany wants to train another 10,000 soldiers from Ukraine this year. In Brussels, Defense State Secretary Siemtje Möller said that, as last year, the training should take place as part of the European training mission EUMAM. It is clear to Germany that it will continue to stand firmly on Ukraine’s side.
To date, around 40,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in the EU through the EU mission. It was decided by the foreign ministers of the member states in November 2022. At that time it was said that up to 15,000 Ukrainian soldiers would initially be trained in Germany, Poland and other EU countries. The goal was later increased to 30,000 and then to 40,000. The Bundeswehr has trained around 10,000 of them.
With the mission, the EU wants to help ensure that Ukrainian troops will be able to defend themselves even better against attackers from Russia in the future than before. It is also about increasing the country’s resilience in the conflict. The German Bundeswehr trains Ukrainian armed forces on, among other things, the Patriot air defense system, the self-propelled howitzer 2000, the Marder infantry fighting vehicle and the Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 main battle tanks. There are also training courses in military leadership and the medical sector.
According to the Bundeswehr, an average of around 1,500 Bundeswehr members were recently involved in the mission. They were therefore used as trainers, but also in supplying the Ukrainian forces and as language mediators. There is no Bundestag mandate for the operation, as it does not constitute the use of armed forces within the meaning of the Parliamentary Participation Act.
The EUMAM is the first training mission on European soil. So far, soldiers from partner countries have been trained on site. However, this is too dangerous in Ukraine.