Courses delivered by the Ministry of National Defence and the Lithuanian Armed Forces have already resulted in training of approx. 500 Ukrainian troops over 2022. The pace of the training will be doubled to speed up the increase of Ukraine’s resilience – in 2023 the Lithuanian Armed Forces will train approx. 1500 members for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 1100 of the number will be trained in Lithuania. The transferred expertise will not only support Ukraine’s effort to stand up against the current Russian aggression but also in the long-term as the training continues.
“Lithuania will continue supporting Ukraine in every way possible for as long as necessary, until the Russian war comes to close. We will also enhance Ukraine’s military capabilities afterwards: the aim of our assistance is to help Ukraine win in this war and to ensure its territorial integrity in the long-term. We support the Armed Forces of Ukraine and help build its resilience not only by responding to the current needs but also by working to ensure deterrence in the future,” says Minister of National Defence Arvydas Anušauskas.
The last course on the schedule for Ukrainian troops began in Lithuania this week. It teaches safe conduct in a CBRN-contaminated operational environment. Later in December the pervious courses on UAVs and intelligence collection from open sources will wrap as well.
In 2022 instructors of the Lithuanian Armed Forces have provided training to Ukrainian troops in 18 different courses: basic individual skills, junior officer command, instructor, special forces, demolition and demining courses. Operators and maintenance for different types of military equipment were also trained.
“We are contributing not only to a stronger Ukraine but also to a stronger Lithuania and the whole Europe by training the Ukrainian military. Our assistance to Ukraine is particularly flexible and satisfies the different needs of Ukraine, not just the current but the prospective ones,” says A. Anušauskas.
Part of the courses scheduled in 2023 will be a part of the new European Union’s Military Assistance Mission Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine). Training is planned to be provided on EU territory for approx. 15 thousand Ukrainian military in total.
Photo credit: Military Academy of Lithuania / E. Genys
