Finnish military instructors sent to UK to train troops in Ukraine
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The initiative is meant to provide Ukrainian troops with basic military training in mid-June, with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days.
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US Marine Corps and Finnish army platoon commanders during an exercise near Niinisalo, Finland, May 10, 2019 (US Marine Corps/Lance Cpl. Scott Jenkins)
The Finnish Defense Ministry said on Monday that the Finnish military will send 20 military instructors to the UK to take part in a training program for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The initiative was first proposed last June by outgoing UK PM Boris Johnson with the offer to launch a major training operation for Ukrainian forces, with the potential to train up to 10,000 soldiers every 120 days.
"Finland will send approximately 20 service personnel to the United Kingdom to take part in a training program for the Ukrainian Armed Forces," the Finnish defense ministry said on the website.
Other nations in the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) and Canada were given the opportunity to join the initiative. These consists of Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway.
The coalition was publicly launched as a NATO initiative in 2014 and is intended to offer support to NATO or any other international security force when the necessity arises.
Read more: US prepares new $1 billion Ukraine weapons package: Report
Finland is still on its way to gaining full membership in the NATO coalition. Last Wednesday, the US Senate voted 95 to 1 to ratify Finland and Sweden's NATO application to join the alliance. Only seven other member states out of the 30 still need to ratify the accession bid.
