Germany breaks NATO precedent by inviting Ukrainian combat veterans to train its own troops

Germany has become the first NATO member to invite Ukrainian military trainers onto its soil to instruct its own armed forces.

Lieutenant General Christian Freuding, commander of the German Army, told Reuters in an interview that Berlin and Kyiv reached an agreement to that effect in February.

The development inverts the established dynamic: whereas Western forces have until now trained Ukrainian soldiers, Ukrainian instructors will henceforth pass on the combat expertise they have accumulated on the frontlines against Russia to the German military.

“We have high expectations. Ukrainian soldiers are currently the only force in the world with frontline combat experience fighting Russia,” Freuding said.

According to the commander, the first cohort of trainers will comprise a double-digit number of personnel and will remain in Germany for several weeks. The training programme will span a broad range of disciplines, including artillery, combat engineering, armoured warfare, drone operations, and command-and-control.

‘2029 is almost tomorrow’

Lieutenant General Freuding grounded the urgency of this training initiative in intelligence assessments suggesting that Russia could attain the capability to strike NATO by 2029.

“That is almost tomorrow. We have no time; the adversary does not wait for us to declare ourselves ready. That is why we must seize every opportunity,” he said.

A partnership forged through the Leopard

Since Russia’s military intervention began in 2022, Germany had been training Ukrainian soldiers in the operation of Western-supplied equipment, principally Leopard tanks and Marder infantry fighting vehicles.

According to Freuding, Ukraine refined those skills under real combat conditions and succeeded in developing tactics uniquely adapted to modern warfare. “The very fact that they are now coming to us as trainers reflects an equal partnership in the security domain,” he added.

The commander expressed confidence that Germany’s initiative would serve as a precedent for other NATO members.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously offered the United States assistance in countering Iranian-made drones in the Middle East.