© Getty Images / Sofiia Bobok; Anadolu AgencyClose-up view of Ukrainian military uniform during the training session provided by Trident Defense Initiative
"If I only did what [the Western military] taught me, I'd be dead," the Ukrainian serviceman, who goes by Suleman, told the outlet, adding that he had previously trained with American, British, and Polish soldiers, who had offered "some good advice," but also some "bad advice."
The commander explained that some of the methods taught by Western instructors, such as how to clear trenches, would have led to the deaths of Ukrainian military personnel. "I told them: 'Guys, this is going to get us killed.'"
Meanwhile, military analysts Michael Kofman and Rob Lee claimed in a report cited by the Financial Times that one of the key lessons of Kiev's failed summer counteroffensive was that training the troops for five weeks was "too short."
They specifically noted a "poor understanding" on the part of the instructors of how Ukraine's military typically fights and of the "operating environment writ large," which has led to "false expectations, misplaced advice and unfair criticism in Western official circles."
Kofman and Lee also pointed out that the tough conditions of the battleground - such as sprawling minefields, fortifications, and hovering drones - would have made it impossible for Ukraine's forces to follow the NATO doctrine of combined arms warfare, which implies coordinated actions by infantry, armor, artillery, and air defense.
Instead, the analysts concluded that Kiev's forces are best at fighting in "small highly maneuverable assault units," but struggle to run operations above the level of a company (200 men) or even platoon (20-50 men).
Kiev's counteroffensive was launched in early June and was widely promoted in Western media as a breaking moment for Ukraine in the ongoing conflict with Russia. However, despite the hype, the operation has ultimately failed to result in any significant territorial gains and has led to heavy casualties among Ukraine's forces.
Russian President Vladimir Putin stated earlier this week that estimates suggest Kiev had lost over 71,00 troops and 543 tanks since the counteroffensive began - casualties that seem to indicate that Ukraine's leadership was seeking to achieve results "at any cost" and did not care about the lives of its own citizens.
Reader Comments
After years and years of fighting a certain way, it becomes the focus and the norm for the militaries, and its soldiers. Now these NATO soldiers are trying to teach Ukranians how to fight their (NATO) way which clearly doesn't work in this (Ukranian) environment. It is an entireley different way of fighting with an entirely different type of soldiers and mixed equipment/tacticts.
Once again, NATO is getting invloved in a situation/conflict, albeit by proxy, and all they are doing it making it worse, not better and once again paid for, needlesly, by the lives of others.
"NATO is a defensive alliance". Don't make me laugh.
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You have been outed by your sister.
Now go get psychological help
Better stop feeding it.
No Western army fought a real war in the last 50 years or so, only policing actions against far inferior forces - often goat herders in sandals with small arms and a RPG here and there. The only expertise these fools have in in brown-nosing and having the right family relations.
But as long as the Western MICs can sell their insanely expensive and ridiculously useless weapons to naive or scared stiff parties, this tragedy will go on. And the clueless "experts" will remain in place.
Obviously one motivation for this war is to enrich the Owners of the MIC; other than that, I see no tactics or strategy being implemented that makes any sense.
If the desire was to "Weaken Russia" which has superior logistics, population, resources, manufacturing capacity, and weapons systems, then why spend the men and equipment you do have trying to dislodge the enemy from entrenched defensive positions. Why let the Russians build such positions uncontested in the first place?
After the Donbass oblasts were officially annexed by Putin he assumed a constitutional duty to secure them, so why did not Ukraine build well positioned entrenched defenses and let the Russians attack them instead?? That would have bought them time for F16's, Abrams etc. perhaps a few wings of A10s as well.