The agency recommends the EU members to come up with a two-year extension of the military aid mission for Ukraine until November 2026, the media reported, citing the review.
The document indicates a gap in the Ukrainian military training expectations and the real battlefield, saying it questions the entire point of the mission. The document also reads that the "current training models of the military are shaped by peacetime standards of Western training" and require reforms.
One of the main requests made by Kiev is to relocate the training closer to Ukraine, at least to a border region, to avoid logistical expenditures, Euractiv reported, adding that not all EU members support this idea.
EU foreign and defense ministers are expected to discuss the EUMAM’s role on the basis of the Ukrainian feedback this week, the media added.
Almost 60,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been trained under the EUMAM mission since the start of the conflict in February 2022, according to Euractiv.
Brussels launched the EUMAM in November 2022 with an expected duration of two years. The EUMAM is engaged not only in training but also in arming Ukrainian troops. Countries outside the EU have also joined the mission, which has operational headquarters in Brussels in the same building which houses the European External Action Service.
Since the beginning of Russia's special military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, Western countries have been providing Kiev with military equipment and training for Ukrainian soldiers. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has accused NATO member states of being directly involved in the Ukrainian conflict
Moscow has repeatedly warned that NATO countries are "playing with fire" by supplying arms that the Kremlin said adds to prolonging the conflict in Ukraine. Lavrov, for his part, underscored that any cargo with weapons for the Zelensky regime would become a legitimate target for Russian forces.