British Army suffers losses from training Ukrainian recruits?

The UK Ministry of Defence has admitted that its military support for Ukraine has “limited” its ability to train British troops, with a quarter of its military training bases being used for “Operation Interflex” – a basic infantry training programme for Ukrainian soldiers.

Ukrainian soldiers train at a site in northern England on February 16, 2023.

According to The Telegraph , more than 45,000 Ukrainian recruits have taken part in the program. The report states that as a result of the campaign, British military units were rejected eight times more often for training at training bases last year than in 2019.

The NAO report comes as UK Defence Secretary John Healey announced last week that "Operation Interflex" would continue through 2025.

Operation Interforge, another training program for Ukrainian marines, also had to move to the Netherlands this year because using training facilities in the UK risked affecting the training needs of the British Royal Marines.

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NAO chief Gareth Davies warned: “As the UK Ministry of Defence plans its future support for Ukraine, it must continue to balance strategic interests with maintaining the UK’s own military capability. This includes ensuring that UK forces have the right equipment and adequate training.”

Responding to the report, a UK Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: "All UK forces have access to the training they need to be ready to defend the country and fulfil their NATO commitments."

“We welcome the NAO report which acknowledges that the Ukrainian military is better prepared to defend their country in a conflict with Russia thanks to UK training,” a UK Ministry of Defence spokesperson said.

Risk of decline in arsenal

Just before the war broke out, Britain donated £171.5 million of equipment from its reserves to Ukraine, in addition to spending £2.4 billion on new equipment for Kyiv.

Challenger 2 tank produced by the British army

In addition, since the International Fund for Ukraine was established in 2022, the UK has also become the largest donor and has pledged £7.8 billion in support for Ukraine by March 2025. These funds are drawn from the UK Treasury's reserves, including the provision of military equipment and training for Ukrainian soldiers, according to The Telegraph .

Recently, General Patrick Sanders, former British Army Commander-in-Chief, warned that Britain's provision of 14 Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine has left the country "temporarily weakened" and left a gap in the country's arsenal.

Sharing the same view, in response to the Financial Times in July, Mr. Rob Johnson, Director of the Oxford Center for Changing the Nature of War (UK) and former head of the Office of Assessment and Actual Challenge (SONAC) of the UK Ministry of Defense, assessed that the British army is currently in a state of shortage to the point of being unable to protect the country, and is having difficulty mobilizing large numbers of troops.

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Faced with the above situation, former Commander-in-Chief Sanders emphasized that Britain will face the risk of conflict in the next 5 years, so the army is forced to fill the "empty" arsenal and stockpile lethal weapons.

Responding to the NAO report, the UK Ministry of Defence confirmed that the cost of replenishing the UK’s weapons stockpile would far exceed the value of the equipment donated to Ukraine. This difference is because the UK is buying newer, in some cases more advanced, equipment than the weapons donated to Ukraine. The Ministry of Defence also said it expected to spend £2.71 billion by 2030-31.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/quan-doi-anh-chiu-thiet-vi-huan-luyen-tan-binh-ukraine-185240912150046045.htm