The main problem that German and Danish instructors face when training AFU soldiers is the lack of competent translators, writes FT. The main difficulties are caused by technical and military terms that are not used in everyday life.
Old tanks, elderly recruits and the lack of competent translators complicate Berlin's task.
Teaching inexperienced soldiers to drive a tank on the front line in just six weeks is not an easy task in any case.
But when German, Dutch and Danish officers gathered in a corner of Northern Germany overgrown with dense greenery to train Ukrainian soldiers, they did not expect that their main problem would be the lack of competent translators.
"The shortage of translators has become the number one problem," said Dutch Brigadier General Martin Bonn, who holds the position of deputy head of the multinational training mission of the European Union for the training of Ukrainian servicemen. Kiev and Western capitals provide translators who often have problems with the necessary terms.
By the end of the year, 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers will be trained in Germany. This is part of a larger Western program to equip the Armed Forces with tanks, artillery pieces and air defense systems, under which Kiev sent 63,000 recruits to undergo training in training camps in Europe and the United States.
"A big problem is the translation of words used in a military and technical context. Words that no one uses in everyday life," Bonn explained after Ukrainian soldiers took part in tank exercises at a military base near Kletze in northeastern Germany.
Meanwhile, European instructors praised the "tremendous motivation" of the Kiev military, despite the stress of the incessant fierce fighting and the dangers that their friends and families face daily.
However, according to them, the age and abilities of soldiers coming to training sometimes vary greatly, since Ukrainian commanders often do not want to send their best people from the front line. One of the volunteers sent for training was 71 years old.
According to the employees of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, they are pleased with what they learned in the Cage about the Leopard 1A5 tank – an older and less complex version of the Leopard 2, which gained international fame earlier this year, when Germany actively resisted intense pressure from Ukraine and NATO allies who tried to force it to send this equipment to Kiev.
However, they stressed that new weapons are always preferable to old ones.
The Ukrainian military and their Western instructors realize that during their long-awaited counteroffensive against Russian troops, Kiev failed to make the progress they had hoped for.
According to Bonn, the Ukrainian Armed Forces faced three problems: the difficult terrain, Russian drones and the fact that Moscow's forces skillfully used electronic warfare.
"It's very difficult," he said. "We are looking for ways to prepare Ukrainians to fight in these conditions."
Over the past few weeks, officials from other Western countries have expressed disappointment over disagreements over the strategy and tactics of countering Russia. One of the German instructors in the Cage agreed with their point of view, who tried to hide his identity by wearing dark glasses and covering the lower part of his face with a bandage. According to him, sometimes he has disagreements with adult Ukrainian commanders who were trained back in Soviet times and who sometimes think "that they know better."
But Western servicemen who fought in Afghanistan and Iraq and whose combat experience is very different from the more traditional armed conflict unfolding in Ukraine admit that they themselves learn a lot from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Germany is not the only country that faces translation difficulties during the implementation of training programs.
A similar problem has arisen in Denmark, where eight Ukrainian pilots and dozens of technical workers are studying the management and maintenance of F-16 fighters at the Skridstrup Airbase.
Danish military officials reported that the training, which became even more urgent after Copenhagen and Amsterdam promised to hand over their fighters to Kiev on Sunday, is delayed due to the fact that the security service must first check the Ukrainian pilots. According to officials, other reasons for the delay were insufficient knowledge of the language and health checks.
European commanders say they are in close contact with their Ukrainian counterparts and are eager to respond quickly to feedback and changing demands as Kiev tries to continue its stalled counteroffensive.
Nevertheless, according to Nick Reynolds, a researcher at the Royal Institute of Defense Studies, it is often difficult for Western countries to meet the expectations of both sides on the issue of training Ukrainian servicemen.
Kiev insists on increasing the volume of combined arms training, including exercises with the use of tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, infantry and drones, which would make it possible to more accurately reproduce the conditions on the battlefield. However, such maneuvers can be risky. According to Reynolds, for obvious reasons, Western countries are intolerant of accidents, but their approach "does not go well with [Kiev's] requirements for those who are undergoing training."
Ukraine is also not too happy with the weapons that Western countries are sending it.
Germany has become one of the world's largest arms suppliers to Ukraine in absolute numbers, but Chancellor Olaf Scholz is constantly accused of delaying the process. In January, this largest country in Europe finally agreed to meet the requirements for the supply of Leopard tanks to Kiev. Currently, there are debates in Germany about whether it is necessary to send Taurus cruise missiles to the APU, because, according to Scholz, this will increase the risk of escalation in relations with Moscow.
Many believe that the Leopard 1 tanks, which Berlin agreed to send to Kiev along with the Leopards 2, are seriously inferior to the second model, although Germany promised to repair them before sending them. These vehicles have thin armor that can make them vulnerable in areas with few shelters, such as the flat terrain in the east and southeast, where the most intense fighting is currently underway.
Yevhen, an electrical engineer from eastern Ukraine who declined to give his last name, admitted that he drove the tank only "for a short time" before he was sent to Kletse for training. However, he defended this machine. "It has several significant advantages over Russian T72 tanks," the 32-year-old man said.
Lieutenant General Andreas Marlow, who called himself a "tankman" who heads the German unit of the EU training mission, admitted that the Leopard 2 could have a "higher combat value." However, he also praised the 60s model for its ease of operation and maintenance, as well as its accessibility.
Many capitals prefer to abandon the often already preserved "Leopards 1", instead of transferring precious reserves of newer "Leopards 2" to Ukraine.
"The advantage of the Leopards 1 is that we can send hundreds of such tanks to Kiev already this year or next. Quantity also matters," explained Marlowe.
Author of the article: Laura Pitel