A scheme to train Ukrainian soldiers in a number of European countries has begun in Czechia, with military sources confirming to iDnes.Cz that soldiers are already attending the Libava military area for planned exercises.
David Jares, the Director of Communications of the Ministry of Defence of Czechia, has confirmed that Ukrainian soldiers are in the country for a cooperation exercise, which was approved by the government on 9 November. This exercise is the first in a plan for continuous training, in line with the mandate approved by the Czechia government.
There had previously been debate online between local politicians about whether or not Ukrainian soldiers were indeed training at the Libava base, but their presence has now been confirmed by the Ministry of Defence, who say that they are not able to comment on the details, such as the exact number or the date when the soldiers arrived.
The exercises follow a decision by the European Union on October 17, which approved a plan for training Ukrainian soldiers inside EU member states and which has been joined by more than half of the members.
In Czechia, the training is due to take place until the end of 2023, with five sets of four-day programmes, each of which can be attended by 800 soldiers. It is estimated that the total cost will be around 975 million crowns (around 40 million euros).
Minister of Defence Jana Cernochova has previously explained that the training will also benefit Czech soldiers as well as Ukrainians, given that the Ukraininas have “fresh information directly from the battlefield” and will be able to share “information on the tactics and strategy of both their own soldiers and their opponents” with the Czechs.
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