You're reading: US pays $19 million for training Ukrainian national guards in Lviv Oblast

The Fearless Guardian exercise held at the Yavoriv test and training range (Lviv Oblast), involving American troops, became possible thanks to the $19 million in financial aid from the United States, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Yevhen Perebyinis said.

“The aim of the exercise is for the U.S. military instructors to transfer extra skills to the Ukrainian National Guard service members, which could be necessary during military operations. In particular, they involve complex training in providing medical assistance, responding to shelling and identifying an enemy’s positions. The exercise became possible thanks to the U.S. target aid for the National Guard in the amount of $19 million,” he said at a briefing in Kyiv on April 21.

The exercise will be held in three stages and continue through November 2015, with up to 300 national guardsmen expected to be trained at every stage, the spokesman said.

“Since March, training of the Ukrainian troops has continued under the supervision of British instructors. The Canadian ones are expected to arrive very soon. Poland, too, has unveiled plans to send its instructors to Ukraine,” the spokesman said.