Polish Airborne Units Based in Cracow Tasked with Provision of Training for the Ukrainian “Cyborgs”

Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine (JMTG-U) is a name of the military training mission carried out by the US forces to support Ukraine. Within the scope of the mission, relevant training operations are to take place until the year 2020. The training is being conducted by experienced soldiers, hailing from several NATO member states: USA, Canada, UK, Poland and Lithuania. The purpose of the JMTG-U operation is to expand the operational capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. 

As we were informed by Lt. Col. Szczepan Głuszczak, Spokesman and Head of the Communications Department at the General Command of the Armed Forces, Poland would have 40 soldiers of the Cracow-based 6th Airborne Brigade involved in the training organized for the troops hailing from the Mikolayov-based soldiers of the Ukrainian 1st Battalion, 79th Airborne-Assault Brigade. The exercise is carried out jointly with the Ukrainians, and it concerns tactics and operational procedures related to individual and support weaponry. Within the press releases, the US Army stresses the fact that the 1st Battalion of the 79th Brigade was involved in the long defence of the Donetsk airfield, back in 2014. Its soldiers are dubbed “cyborgs”, due to the determined, long-haul defensive efforts, concerning the aforesaid facility. 

In the autumn of 2016, Polish commandos of the Lubliniec unit were also involved in the JMTG-U effort. The training for the Ukrainians was also conducted by the Polish soldiers hailing from the 21st Highland Brigade, based in Rzeszów.