EU Considers Training Ukrainian Troops Inside Ukraine

Ukraine believes training soldiers in its territory would be 'faster, more cost-effective, and logistically easier'

The EU has said it would consider a Ukrainian request for training soldiers inside Ukraine “should the necessary political and operational conditions be met,” POLITICO reported on Tuesday.

An EU External Action Service document from July, obtained by POLITICO, says that the EU would need to do more analysis on the idea of training soldiers in Ukraine and acknowledges that doing so would be provocative toward Russia and endanger the trainers.

“A further and a more comprehensive analysis would be needed, in order to fully assess the risks and possible mitigation measures, as well as political and operational advantages of conducting some training,” the document reads.

The document says it’s “highly likely that an EU military presence on Ukrainian soil would be perceived by Russia as a provocation” and adds that it’s “not feasible” for the EU to protect trainers it sends to Ukraine.

Some EU countries have expressed support for sending trainers to Ukraine, including France. After meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in June, French President Emmanuel Macron said he would “finalize” a plan to send troops to Ukraine, but it never materialized.

There is a small, unofficial NATO presence in Ukraine, including British soldiers helping with targeting, but what Macron was discussing would have been an official deployment of military trainers.

The EU’s Military Assistance Mission for Ukraine has helped train Ukrainian soldiers in Poland and Germany. According to the EU document, the Ukrainian government asked for the training to take place inside Ukraine because it feels “this is deemed as faster, more cost-effective, and logistically easier.”

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.