Britain Seeks to Provide Military Training in Ukraine

British Defense Minister Grant Shapps revealed in a press interview that the British government aims to deploy military trainers in Ukraine, in addition to training the Ukrainian armed forces in Britain or other Western countries as is currently the case. In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, Shapps stated that "there is room to provide military training inside Ukraine following discussions on Friday with British army leaders." He was quoted saying, "I was talking today about eventually bringing training closer and also within Ukraine," and added, "especially in the west of the country, I believe the opportunity now is to bring more things into the country." Shapps expressed hope that British defense companies like BAE Systems would advance their plans to establish arms factories in Ukraine. So far, Britain and its allies have avoided an official military presence in Ukraine to mitigate the risks of direct conflict with Russia. Last year, Britain provided five-week military training courses for around 20,000 Ukrainians and intends to train a similar number in the future.