More Ukrainian army recruits may receive basic training in Germany from next year. This was announced by Lieutenant General Andreas Marlow, head of the EU Special Training Command near Berlin, reports "Reuters".
This will be possible if Kiev returns some of the additional military education back to Ukraine.
The need for military personnel is growing amid the ongoing war with Russia.
"We have received more requests for training as Ukraine continues to mobilize, particularly for basic training, which is mainly carried out by the UK," Marlow said.
This is likely to affect the collective training - involving entire companies or battalions - previously held in Germany and which follows basic training, he explained.
Ukraine is under pressure to mobilize more troops as the 27-month war drags on and fewer volunteers sign up.
Kiev aims to handle most of the training itself to simplify logistics and allow troops to be available on the battlefield at shorter notice, Marlowe explained. Spain conducts some training for Ukrainian soldiers, as does Poland.
Marlowe's Special Command is part of a European Union military mission established in 2022 to train around 60,000 Ukrainian soldiers in various skills by mid-November 2024. The aim is to provide assistance to Kiev in its fight with the Russian invasion.
In Germany, instructors from 14 countries train soldiers to operate tanks or air defense systems such as Patriot and IRIS-T. Snipers, engineers, paramedics and drone operators alike are trained, and IT experts learn how to fend off hackers.
Marlow said he does not expect such specialized training to transfer to Ukraine, as it requires the availability of weapons and certain infrastructure, such as simulators.
Kiev had hoped to bring collective training back to the country, in part because teaching operational doctrine is more easily done by Ukrainians and to speed up the deployment of new troops, he said.
"Kiev will have ready-to-use troops much faster than if they were trained in Germany or Spain.
During emergencies, there was less need to bring out soldiers who had completed basic training, where recruits learn how to handle an assault rifle or administer first aid, Marlow stated, "because anyway are not quite ready for action yet".
Basic training in Germany usually takes three months, but for Ukrainians it was shortened to six weeks because of the war.
Kiev's attempt to bring military training back to Ukraine could spark discussions among NATO allies such as France and Lithuania about sending military instructors there.