“If someone gets hurt, kill him for your own safety.” Now Putin wants to send fighters against Ukraine

For months, Ukrainian soldiers have not only been supported with material from the West, but also trained. Shortly after the outbreak of war, many European countries offered assistance, demonstrating how tanks and howitzers worked, as well as providing advice on warfare and tactics. But that is not always well received by the soldiers.

A report in the French daily “Le Monde” now paints a gloomy picture. Reporters from the newspaper went out to interview soldiers at the front about their training. The results are sometimes shocking.

One recruit reported translation difficulties. “One day the instructors told us to think about our own safety before helping the wounded. But the Ukrainian translator said: ‘If someone is injured, kill him for your own safety.’

Infantry movements were taught during the training, but no attacks were simulated – and certainly no minefields. The depth of the trenches also did not correspond to Ukrainian conditions. “We were told how to tell Russian fighting vehicles apart, but not what to do against them,” said a soldier named Yejhen, now deployed to the Bakhmut front. Like many others, he discovered new weapons and tactics on YouTube.

Reminder from Germany: It doesn’t work without an appointment

Another soldier nicknamed “Nesquik” was in Germany for training. All he can remember: “No one just goes to the weapons depot. For every request we must make an appointment, exchange our contact details and then we can deliver. The delivery address changes every time,” he told reporters.

His suggestion: NATO states should send their people to the front for a month and see how the situation changes every day. Russia learns quickly and adapts to new situations. As soon as heavy artillery was deployed, Russian forces responded with immediate attacks.

Soldier: Officers are watching YouTube

Vassil is another soldier defending Ukraine in Donetsk. He was in England for 35 days, where he coordinated the training of 200 soldiers together with Danish and British colleagues. “I told them several times that the NATO manuals do not work in Ukraine, for example in trench warfare. The answer was: “That’s how it is.” The instructors themselves sometimes didn’t think about it. “Several times they had to look for solutions on YouTube, especially when planning operations or when it came to resolving a dispute,” the agent reports.

When he asked to also be trained on drones, the answer was that they were not part of NATO training. Reconnaissance using drones and their use against Russian targets has now become an essential part of Ukrainian defense.

“We have never seen a German leopard”

Even training on Western tanks does not always help at the front. “We only have Soviet equipment here. We know how to use parts from one tank for another, but with American Bradleys we don’t know how to do that. There are too many electronics and we have never seen a German leopard,” said Dimitri, a 45-year-old lieutenant fighting in Donetsk. His boss, Yevgeny, demands that only experienced fighters be sent abroad for training. For example, a recruit in Germany became acquainted with a tank formation that was quickly abandoned in practice due to high losses.

Even when it comes to mine clearance, there are different standards. According to the report, Dmitri, who was trained in Poland, learned to clear entire minefields there – so as not to endanger people. “But here we just need a safe path so that the troops can advance.” Officers spoke to reporters from Le Monde about the effectiveness of training in the West. You only get basic knowledge. Recruits returning were not yet fit for frontline service.

More than 26,500 Ukrainian soldiers trained

Since the winter of 2022, 5,000 Ukrainian soldiers have already been trained under German leadership. The spectrum ranges from training Leopard crews to training in anti-aircraft systems and further training for management personnel. According to the Bundeswehr, one focus is on infantry combat. One of the training locations is the Grafenwöhr military training area in the Upper Palatinate, but German soldiers are also used as trainers in Lithuania.

The training in the field of Western weapon systems takes place in two parts: at the Combined Arms Training Center (CAT-C) in Poland and in Germany. Germany and the Bundeswehr conduct special training for Ukrainian troops, for example tank crews, maintenance soldiers or engineers. According to the Bundeswehr, the soldiers have different levels of training: some are serving for the first time, others have already gained experience since the Russian attack in 2014.

A British-led international training program for the Ukrainian army, supported by ten other countries, has already trained more than 26,500 recruits and aims to train more than 30,000 soldiers by the end of 2023.