First batch of Ukrainian soldiers arrive in Norway for training with Home Guard

The military training program that Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp) announced in January has thus been launched.

The 100 soldiers landed on Monday afternoon at Værnes airport outside Trondheim.

– We are finally getting to implement the plans that we started on last summer. We then received a request as to whether we would be able to do this. Then we quickly answered back that it was us, says Colonel Jens Christian Junge in the Home Guard to NTB.

– They are our friends

The training program has been named Operation Gungne. According to Norse belief, Gungne is Odin’s spear.

Junge himself was there and welcomed the Ukrainian soldiers when they landed on Monday afternoon.

– I am very honored and happy that we get to support Ukraine in this way. We hope to be able to motivate the soldiers and give them important knowledge to be able to withstand the fight against the Russian Empire. This is an important battle not only for Ukraine, but for the whole of Europe, says Junge.

The Minister of Defense points out that the program is in addition to the other training initiatives Norway contributes to.

– Ukraine needs more and better trained soldiers to fight the Russian invasion forces. In addition, they need to increase their competence in several professional fields. It is important that Norway takes its share of this training and contributes where we can. With this, we also increase the total number of soldiers who are trained by Western countries, says Gram to NTB.

Colonel Junge has a mantra when meeting the Ukrainian soldiers:

– These are our friends. They should feel that they are well looked after, and that they are with people who care.

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Carpenters and teachers

The training will take place at Heimevernet’s facility in Trøndelag. The 100 Ukrainians will receive special training in team leadership, sanitation and sharpshooting, says Captain Rune Haarstad in the Home Guard’s communications section.

– Many come straight from the front, he says.

Many of the soldiers are well-grown family members who have had to dress in uniform out of necessity, and who have little military training.

– Many have jobs as teachers and carpenters and have families. That is why it is brilliant that it is Norwegian adult carers who will teach them the trade. It will be a completely different way of relating to people, says Haarstad.

The Home Guard has now employed 55 officers and instructors who will be responsible for the training.

Rotation every five weeks

The Ukrainian soldiers had to make their own way from various front sections in Ukraine to Poland. A Norwegian chartered plane was waiting for them there.

The soldiers will be in Norway for four weeks. There will then be a week’s break before another 100 soldiers are in place. The rotation will last throughout the summer and autumn with a total of seven pools.

But Junge hopes there will be more.

– We are prepared for this assignment to last longer. We also have a desire to learn from their experience from the front, he says.

Trønder hospitality

The soldiers must be in Trøndelag throughout their stay. But even if they get to experience the Trønder leaf bounce in May, there are four weeks of intense training ahead of them.

– They are probably tired and hungry when they arrive. When they leave, they will probably be tired but full. We will show them good Trønder hospitality while they are here, says Junge.