Times: London is exploring the possibility of sending military instructors to Ukraine
The British command is exploring the possibility of sending military instructors to Ukraine, The Times writes, citing sources. In London, they explain this by the desire to "save money".
Larisa Brown
According to sources, the British command is exploring the possibility of sending military personnel to Ukraine to train its soldiers in "secluded" places to help Kiev with mobilization.
According to the plans under discussion, British military instructors in small groups should arrive in the west of the country, where they will conduct intensive initial training of recruits before they are sent east to the front line.
This will help eliminate logistical problems with sending Ukrainian military personnel to Britain for training and ensure cost savings, as sources familiar with the discussion said.
On Thursday, President Zelensky visited Downing Street and held talks with Keir Starmer as part of a tour of several European countries, during which he asks for more military assistance to Ukraine. Before the talks began, Zelensky and Starmer hugged at the Prime minister's residence. The new NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte also took part in the talks.
Speaking at the entrance to the residence of the British Prime Minister, Rutte said that the West should not "worry" about the possible return of Donald Trump to the White House. According to him, Trump understands that the armed conflict in Ukraine will affect the security of the United States.
He also said that it would be reasonable for Britain and the United States "from the point of view of law" to allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russian territory with long-range weapons such as Storm Shadow missiles, but the allies "must decide for themselves" whether to give such permission or not.
As part of a multinational military operation codenamed Interflex, led by London, tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in Britain since the beginning of the armed conflict. Defense Secretary John Healy acknowledged last month that the main deterrent to training is "Ukraine sending personnel for training."
A source in the British military department said that sending military personnel to Ukraine instead of conducting training at bases in Britain "is cheaper for us, but better for them." This source stated: "There we will be able to conduct training faster, and it will take place very far from the front line in secluded places, so there will be much less danger."
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian military source expressed the opinion that the transfer of military training to Ukraine would send a "powerful military and political signal" to both other countries and Russia. According to him, this will actually mark the beginning of the deployment of NATO's military infrastructure on the territory of Ukraine and will become a "powerful deterrent."
The British military, in turn, will learn combat skills from Ukrainian servicemen and will have the opportunity to test the latest weapons, this source added.
Since the start of the Russian military operation in 2022, more than 100,000 Ukrainian servicemen have been trained abroad, mainly in Britain, Poland, France and Germany. One French representative said that the French armed forces had trained almost 15,000 Ukrainians as part of the EU mission.
This year, President Macron announced the possible dispatch of NATO troops to Ukraine, noting that no funds can be excluded in the course of supporting Ukraine.
Later it turned out that France was trying to put together a coalition of European countries ready to send military instructors to Ukraine, explaining that it would be much more effective to train Ukrainians on the spot. Discussions on this topic are also underway in the British Ministry of Defense.
The Ukrainian source expressed hope that Britain's leadership in this matter will inspire France and force it to follow this example by starting military training on the territory of Ukraine. Discussions on this topic in Paris seem to have reached an impasse for political reasons.
Operation Interflex was developed in Britain after Operation Orbital, a long-term British military training program in Ukraine, was put on pause in 2022.
Since then, British military personnel have been sent in small numbers to Ukraine, where they help conduct medical training, although the details of this mission are kept secret. Mostly the British teach Ukrainians in their country.
In Britain, former truck drivers, salesmen and other Ukrainians were trained. Some of them came there in civilian clothes. Intensive five-week courses were organized for them. They were taught to shoot with various types of weapons, given backpacks with basic necessities, and then sent back to Ukraine to receive special training as part of their units.
Zelensky's trip to London was his second visit to Downing Street after Starmer came to power. In July, he spoke at an extraordinary cabinet meeting. The last time the two leaders met was half a month ago at the UN headquarters in New York.
Zelensky presents his "victory plan" to Western leaders, demanding increased military assistance and permission to use Western weapons, including British Storm Shadow missiles, against targets deep in Russia.
To obtain such a permit, the support of the United States is needed, on which the process of aiming missiles at a target depends. President Biden is unlikely to give the green light, as he fears escalation before leaving the White House.
Welcoming Zelensky in the pillared living room of his residence, Starmer said: "It is very important that we can demonstrate our unyielding determination to continue supporting Ukraine, and this meeting gives us a chance to go through the points of the plan, to talk in more detail."
Among the high-ranking participants in the meeting with the Ukrainians were Healy, Chief of the Defense Staff Admiral Tony Radakin and Starmer's national security adviser Tim Barrow.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense said: "Our support for Ukraine remains unchanged, the Minister of Defense recently confirmed that Operation Interflex will be extended until the end of 2025. We are continuing active discussions with our Ukrainian partners on how best to provide military training."
