2,300 Ukrainian soldiers being trained in France as part of new brigade
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The French military is training and equipping Ukraine's Anne de Kyiv brigade in France, the first instance of a foreign country training a Ukrainian brigade on its territory, the French Embassy in Kyiv said on Oct. 9.
A total of 2,300 Ukrainian soldiers are being trained by the French Armed Forces in the northeastern Grand Est region, according to French President Emmanuel Macron.
Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and his French counterpart Sebastien Lecornu, along with French President Emmanuel Macron, are expected to meet with some of the 15,000 Ukrainian troops that Paris has trained since the full-scale Russian invasion.
"France is the first country to train a full-fledged Ukrainian brigade on its territory. This initiative is unparalleled in terms of the number of trained soldiers and the duration of the training," the statement read.
Under the new program, Ukrainian soldiers are being trained in France, as well as Poland. The training recreates real conditions of combat operations, involving French equipment that will be handed over to the Ukrainian military, according to the embassy.
The training includes armored battle using AMX10 RC wheeled tanks and Milan missiles, air defense using Mistral missiles, as well as the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, snipers, and Caesar artillery systems.
In June, Macron unveiled that Paris would provide Kyiv with an unspecified number of Mirage 2000-5 planes to boost its airpower. The first cohort of Ukrainian pilots have completed Alpha Jet training in France, the French Armed Forces announced on Sept. 20.
"The training of pilots is part of the ongoing transfer of AASM and SCALP air-to-ground weaponry," the embassy said.
After the beginning of Russia's full-scale war, Paris has delivered to Ukraine a number of long-range SCALP missiles, and Macron announced in February a coalition to supply Kyiv with "medium- and long-range missiles and bombs."
Another of Macron's initiatives, sending military instructors to Ukraine, has reportedly been supported by some countries but so far seen no development.
