– Ukrainian troops are in dire need of further training and education. Norway is positive about the British initiative to train Ukrainian soldiers in Great Britain. “We will participate with instructors for the basic training of these soldiers, like some other countries,” said the Defense Minister.

Since June, several hundred Ukrainian soldiers have received training in Britain in the use of modern weapons systems that could be crucial in the fight against the Russian invasion.

The British government previously said it could provide infantry training to as many as 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers every four months. It is this work that Norway must now contribute.

Positive for removing mines

In addition, Norway has taken a positive stance on the initiative from Iceland to establish a training project for minefields in Ukraine.

– The Norwegian Armed Forces have good expertise in this area and could initially contribute to work on developing this concept, said Gram.

The Defense Minister participated in an international donors conference in Copenhagen this week, where defense ministers from several countries have gathered to continue work on the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which was set up earlier this year.

– At today’s meeting, I raised what I believe to be three central points for the work going forward: Coordination, predictability and sustainability. “It is important for us to continue to cooperate and coordinate closely with our allies on support for Ukraine,” Gram said.

– At the same time, Ukraine should build their own capacity for management and planning, and Western countries should help them with this, he said.

Denmark with billions of support

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksij Reznikov, UK Defense Minister Ben Wallace and Danish Defense Minister Morten Bdskov hosted the meeting.

For its part, Denmark has pledged an additional 820 million Danish kroner for long-term assistance to the defense of Ukraine. That equates to about NOK 1,080 million, and means Denmark has so far sent nearly NOK 4 billion in aid to Ukraine since February.

The Ukrainian Defense Contact Group is a group of countries that contributed to the defense of Ukraine after Russia’s invasion of the country on February 24.

Keep yourself updated. Get daily newsletter from Dagsavisen