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| anatolii stepanov/AFP/Getty Images |
Soldiers, plus military brass and overseers in parliament, have been transformed from a rigid Soviet-style force into a modern army that thinks on the move
When Ukrainian National Guard Lt. Andriy Kulish ambushes Russian forces, he thanks the Canadian army.
The Canadians trained Lt. Kulish’s Rapid Response Brigade last summer in urban warfare, field tactics and battlefield medicine. The exercise in western Ukraine was one of the many in recent years with troops from Canada, the U.K., Romania and the California National Guard.
This was just one piece of a little-publicized effort by countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that transformed Ukraine’s military up and down the ranks, from foot soldiers to the defense ministry to overseers in parliament. It is one big reason why Ukraine’s nimble fighting force has surprised the world by fending off a much larger and better-equipped invading army, say Ukrainians and their Western advisers.
Through classes, drills and exercises involving at least 10,000 troops annually for more than eight years, NATO and its members helped the embattled country shift from rigid Soviet-style command structures to Western standards where soldiers are taught to think on the move.
In confounding Russian invaders today, Lt. Kulish says his comrades-in-arms “are definitely using procedures they learned during the training with NATO.”
The Western assistance, while never secret, wasn’t trumpeted to avoid riling Russia. It also remained low-key because it was a valuable source of intelligence for the U.S. and its allies. Ukraine has been fighting a shooting war with Russian-backed separatists in parts of its east for years, meaning Kyiv fields some of Europe’s most battle-hardened soldiers. Their front-line experience made them sponges for NATO training—and offered NATO commanders a window into what it would be like to fight Russia, say Western officers involved in the programs. --->READ MORE HERE
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| Photo: Sergei Supinsky/AFP/Getty Images |
The moves will enable Ukraine to target Moscow’s forces in Donbas and Crimea and counter an anticipated Russian offensive
The Biden administration is moving to significantly expand the intelligence it is providing to Ukraine’s forces so they can target Moscow’s military units in Russian-occupied Donbas and Crimea, part of a shift in U.S. support that also includes a new security assistance package with heavier weaponry.
The new intelligence guidance comes as the White House said that it will send $800 million in additional weapons to Kyiv, including artillery, armored personnel carriers and helicopters, to help Ukrainian forces hold off a major Russian offensive in the eastern part of the country that is expected to unfold in coming days.
The decision to share more intelligence and provide artillery marks a shift in the Biden’s administration’s approach to the conflict, and comes after weeks of Kyiv asking the U.S. and North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies to provide tanks, aircraft and other heavy weaponry to push back Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February.
Russia is redeploying troops to southern and eastern Ukraine, where it made early gains in the first weeks of the invasion. Ukraine has used the lull in fighting to boost appeals to the West for more weapons and sanctions on Russia.
The Biden administration has already provided thousands of Javelin antitank weapons, Stinger antiaircraft systems and other battlefield arms. The administration, however, has drawn the line at sending Ukraine combat aircraft, which the White House fears could lead Russia to consider Washington as a belligerent in the conflict. Nor has it agreed to Ukraine’s appeals that the U.S. and NATO nations establish a no-fly zone over the country. --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:
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