US may establish new command in Germany to arm Ukraine: report

A new mission is being established at U.S. European Command’s headquarters in Germany to oversee how the U.S. trains and equips Ukrainian troops, according to a report by the New York Times .

The plan for a formal structure in Wiesbaden, Germany, for the U.S. efforts to aid Ukraine following the Russian invasion in February was presented by EUCOM commander Gen. Christopher Cavoli to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in late September, according to the Times.

Citing an unnamed source within the U.S. military and Biden administration, the Times reported that the new command would include approximately 300 personnel, and would likely report to Cavoli. While the command’s headquarters would be situated in Wiesbaden, training would likely take place at other U.S. bases in Germany, such as Grafenwoehr or Hohenfels, where the Army has large ranges.

A final decision on the command is expected within the next few weeks.

“In close coordination with our Allies and partners, we continue to take steps to align our support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces in a more unified manner in order to aid the Ukrainians with their most urgent needs on the battlefield against the Russian invading force,” EUCOM spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Daniel Day told Military Times in a statement. “At this time, any additional changes or moves to improve our ability to support the Ukrainians are pre-decisional, but as previously stated, we continue to take steps to better align our support.”

Signs of a potential re-structuring have been seen in recent weeks, as a multi-national logistics cell — the International Donor Coordination Center — moved from Stuttgart to Wiesbaden earlier this summer.

“The co-location with the U.S. Army Europe and Africa headquarters, as well as XVIII Airborne Corps increases the ability of the organization to rapidly support Ukraine operations,” EUCOM said in a statement regarding the Aug. 6 move.

The U.S. military began its mission to train Ukrainian troops well before Russia launched its full-scale war earlier this year. The initial efforts began in 2015, following the separation of Crimea from Ukraine.

U.S. troops, in addition to forces from Canada, Lithuania, Denmark, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom, have been training Ukrainian forces through the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine. Initially stationed at the Combat Training Center-Yavoriv near Lviv, in western Ukraine, the troops were removed just before the invasion began.

“United States military units support the training to strengthen relationships and affirm the United States’ commitment to European partners,” a press release from the Army stated. “Army National Guard brigade combat teams provide the main support to the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine mission in nine-month rotations as part of the Army’s rotational model.”

The U.S. military also still has thousands of troops positioned across Europe in response to the invasion, including in Poland, Romania, Germany, Latvia and Lithuania. To date, the U.S. has committed more than $16 billion to Ukraine.

Rachel is a Marine Corps veteran and a master's candidate at New York University's Business & Economic Reporting program.

据《纽约时报》报道，美国欧洲司令部在德国总部设立了一项新任务，负责监督美国如何训练和装备乌克兰军队。

据《泰晤士报》报道，美国欧洲司令部司令克里斯托弗·卡沃利将军于9月下旬向国防部长劳埃德·奥斯汀提交了一份计划，拟在德国威斯巴登建立一个正式机构，以协助美国在2月份俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后开展援助工作。

《纽约时报》援引一位不愿透露姓名的美国军方和拜登政府消息人士的话报道称，新成立的司令部将包括约300名人员，并可能向卡沃利汇报工作。司令部总部将设在威斯巴登，但训练很可能在德国的其他美军基地进行，例如格拉芬沃尔或霍亨费尔斯，这些地方都设有陆军大型靶场。

预计将在未来几周内就该指挥权做出最终决定。

“我们正与盟友和伙伴密切协调，继续采取措施，以更加统一的方式支持乌克兰武装部队，以帮助乌克兰军队应对战场上对抗俄罗斯入侵部队的最紧迫需求，”欧洲司令部发言人丹尼尔·戴中校在一份声明中告诉《军事时报》。“目前，任何旨在提升我们支持乌克兰能力的额外调整或举措都尚未最终确定，但正如之前所说，我们将继续采取措施，更好地协调我们的支持。”

最近几周出现了一些可能进行重组的迹象，例如，一个跨国物流部门——国际捐助协调中心——于今年夏天早些时候从斯图加特迁至威斯巴登。

欧洲司令部在一份关于 8 月 6 日搬迁的声明中表示：“与美国陆军欧洲和非洲司令部以及第十八空降军的共同办公地点提高了该组织快速支援乌克兰行动的能力。”

早在俄罗斯今年早些时候发动全面战争之前，美军就开始了对乌克兰军队的训练任务。最初的训练工作始于2015年，即克里米亚脱离乌克兰之后。

除了来自加拿大、立陶宛、丹麦、波兰、瑞典和英国的部队外，美军还通过乌克兰联合多国训练小组对乌克兰部队进行训练。这些部队最初驻扎在乌克兰西部利沃夫附近的亚沃里夫作战训练中心，但在入侵开始前不久被撤离。

美国陆军在一份新闻稿中表示：“美国军事单位支持此次训练，旨在加强与欧洲伙伴的关系，并重申美国对欧洲伙伴的承诺。作为陆军轮换模式的一部分，陆军国民警卫队旅级战斗队以九个月的轮换周期，为联合多国训练小组-乌克兰任务提供主要支援。”

为应对乌克兰入侵，美国军方在欧洲各地仍部署了数千名士兵，包括波兰、罗马尼亚、德国、拉脱维亚和立陶宛。迄今为止，美国已向乌克兰提供了超过160亿美元的援助。

瑞秋是一名海军陆战队退伍老兵，也是纽约大学商业与经济报道专业的硕士研究生。