Ukrainian soldiers get crash course in combat at French military base

rfi: More than 2,000 Ukrainian soldiers have swapped a country at war for a military camp in eastern France, where they’re receiving a crash course in combat. But with only a few months before the recruits head to the front lines, their French trainers are seeking to recreate the conditions in Ukraine as faithfully as possible.

“What’s striking on first contact is that they arrive in a country at peace, and there’s a stress that immediately disappears,” says Colonel Guillaume Vancina, one of the officers in charge of training the Ukrainian troops.

“That’s a very important aspect, and one that I think allows them to work with a certain calm.”

Some 2,300 soldiers began arriving in France from Ukraine in September and will spend around three months in training at an unnamed base in the east of the country.

While allies throughout Europe and beyond have offered assistance since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, this is one of the largest Ukrainian contingents yet trained by another country on its own soil.

Together with another 2,200 troops completing training in Ukraine, they will ultimately form Ukrainian Brigade Number 155 – also known as the “Anna Kyivska” or “Anne de Kiev” brigade, after a medieval Kyiv-born princess who married King Henri I and became queen of France.

Fresh recruits

It’s a steep learning curve for many of the recruits, Vancina told reporters last week.

“Their profiles are very varied, lots of them are conscripts but there are also volunteers.”

France has allocated some 1,500 personnel to prepare them for frontline combat.