Norwegian forces said the new instruction hub will school future Ukrainian trainers in battlefield leadership, resilience under combat stress and the operation of weapons systems supplied to Kyiv by NATO countries.
Courses will also trial new kit in realistic conditions, including unmanned transporters that ferry gear across the battlefield. The program targets commanders at squad, platoon and company level.
“Operation Legio” is run by the Telemark Battalion together with the Norwegian Army’s Rapid Reaction Force Command.
Since August, troops have been building Camp Jomsborg at an undisclosed site in southeastern Poland to host the instructors and several hundred trainees.
The base takes its name from a legendary Viking trading post said to have stood near Wolin during Poland’s first Piast dynasty.
Norwegian-run training previously took place on ranges in northern Norway and later continued inside Ukraine, but the constant risk of Russian drone strikes severely hindered instruction, the military said. Moving to Poland keeps trainees close enough to rotate quickly to field exercises while reducing disruption.
“A location in Poland was found that is sufficiently close to the war zone for the trained soldiers to take part efficiently in subsequent rotation exercises. We know that the Russians would very much like to find out what is happening in our camp,” said Brigadier Atle Molde, the operation’s commander.
Instructors from Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and other countries are expected to join in due course.
The training cycle is initially slated to run through the end of the year, though Molde did not rule out an extension.
(jh)
Source: PAP