The Pentagon has announced it will train Ukrainian troops to use the Patriot missile system, marking one of the few occasions Kyiv forces have been trained on American soil since Russia’s full-scale invasion last year.
The program, which will begin next week and last several months, will be held at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, where the US trains its own troops to use the Patriot, Pentagon press secretary Patrick Ryder said on Tuesday.
The US will train 90 to 100 Ukrainian soldiers, who will learn to operate, maintain and support the Patriot system. The number of service members is approximately the number required to operate a single system.
Ukrainian officials have long sought to be supplied with the Patriot, one of America’s most advanced air defense systems, which would play a key role in helping Kyiv maintain an integrated air defense structure. The US has promised one Patriot system to Ukraine, and Germany has said it will send one.
Each Patriot system, or battery, consists of a truck-mounted launch system with eight launchers, each of which can hold up to four missile interceptors. The battery also has a ground radar, a control station and a generator. The US Army has 16 Patriot batteries.
Ryder said the US military is condensing the typical length of the Patriot training program so that the system can be used in Ukraine as soon as possible.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine last February, some Ukrainian soldiers have received limited training in the US, including on how to operate Switchblade drones.
The US is also expanding efforts to train Ukrainian forces in Europe, with training for larger units in more complex military maneuvers set to begin this month.
As part of this program, the US will train 500 Ukrainian soldiers per month in Germany. It has trained more than 3,100 Ukrainian troops since the full-scale war, including the use of Himars and Howitzers.
Ryder said there are no future plans to train more Ukrainian troops in the Patriot system, but added that could change. U.S.-based training is limited to Patriot carriers, he said.