EU Extends Ukraine Military Training Mission to 2028 With Nearly €300M in Funding

Brussels has extended its military training program for Ukraine by two years, while also approving its first presence on Ukrainian soil as it aims to align its courses more closely with conditions on the frontline. The Council of the EU adopted the decision on Monday, Nov. 9. The European Union Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM) will be prolonged until Nov. 15, 2028, with nearly €300 million ($335 million) set aside in fresh funding for that period.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Since its launch in 2022 at Kyiv’s request, EUMAM has trained Ukrainian military personnel, but only on EU soil. Experience that Ukraine’s Defense Forces have gained in direct combat will now play a larger role in the curriculum, while the mission will put more emphasis on building up military training that supports Ukraine’s own defense priorities. New training centers in Ukraine Speaking during a press conference on Sept. 28, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said member states had agreed on the first steps, among them the extension of the mission by another two years and the establishment of a coordination cell in Kyiv focused on battlefield experience and military education. At the same time, Kallas also said that the EU had secured full funding to modernize two training centers in Ukraine, a plan put forward earlier this year. A contribution from the Netherlands, announced the same day in September, closed “the gap that we had in financing,” she said, adding that support from Germany, Ireland, Denmark and Luxembourg would allow work on both centers to proceed. Other Topics of Interest NVIDIA, AMD, Intel: Inside the Chips Powering Russia’s War Former SEAL Team Six Squadron Leader Chuck Pfarrer takes a deep dive into the supply chain behind Russia’s terror weapons. The idea was initially raised in February, when Kallas announced that the bloc was exploring the possibility of training Ukrainian soldiers on Ukrainian soil in the event of a ceasefire. Under the new decision, the mission will be able to connect with the country’s military leadership, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and allied partners directly, allowing EU members to adjust their programs as Ukraine’s needs change. According to the EU Council, EUMAM will keep working with non-EU allies, including the US, the UK, Canada and Norway. Cooperation will continue with the Coalition of the Willing, as well as with NATO’s Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) command, which coordinates the alliance’s support to Kyiv. Over 100,000 soldiers trained The EU launched the mission roughly eight months after Russia began its full-scale invasion against Ukraine, on Oct. 17, 2022. The first two-year mandate, according to Ukrinform, came with a budget of roughly €107 million ($119 million) and an initial goal of training 15,000 Ukrainian military personnel. That target has since been exceeded; over 100,000 Ukrainian troops have now completed training under EUMAM, according to the Council. Courses range from basic instruction for individual recruits to unit-level and specialist programs, and trainees receive weapons and other equipment to train with. The mission also coordinates the separate training programs run by individual EU governments. Most of the work takes place in Poland and Germany, which host the mission’s two main training commands. In November 2024, when the mandate was last renewed, the bloc committed nearly €409 million ($457 million) over the next two years. By then, around 63,000 soldiers had been trained. Like most of the EU’s military aid, EUMAM is paid for through the European Peace Facility, a fund that sits outside the bloc’s regular budget. The decision comes ahead of winter, when Russia is expected to intensify its winter campaign against critical Ukrainian infrastructure, including energy, water and civilian infrastructure. Russian forces heavily rely on ballistic missiles for such strikes, while Ukraine is facing critical shortages of Patriot interceptors that can down them. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.