The training was or... VIEW ORIGINAL
By Spc. John Onuoha, 6-8 Cav., 2IBCT UPAR
YAVORIV, Ukraine - Soldiers of 6th Squadron, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division learned about foreign weapons in Ukraine on July 20.
The Soldiers, who are currently responsible for training Ukrainian ground forces as part of the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine, were taught how to operate Ukrainian weapons by Canadian Soldiers that have been on this training rotation for the past six-months. JMTG-U is designed to reinforce defensive skills of the Ukrainian Ground Forces in order to increase their capacity for self-defense.
This training was organized in order to help Mustang Soldiers understand the weapons systems that the Ukrainian forces use, how they function and how they are employed.
"The sergeants and higher ranks in this rotation for 6-8 Cav are going to be the ones running the ranges while training Ukrainian Soldiers," said Master Cpl. Jonathan Carson with the Canadian Army. "They will need to know how the weapon works, what it looks like in different states and safety precautions, so they can conduct range trainings safely."
The exercise consisted of five different weapon systems: the PKM machine gun, RPG rocket propelled grenade launcher, AKM assault rifle, the RPK light machine gun and AGLS automatic grenade launcher.
During the training, Canadian Soldiers talked about the importance of learning about foreign weapons and how it would help U.S. Soldiers accomplish the mission here.
"For the junior Soldiers it is good for their situational awareness," said Master Cpl. Pierre-yves Villeneuve. "They are going to be doing demonstrations with these weapons for the Ukrainian Soldiers, so it is very important they understand everything about it before conducting training exercises that will help improve their battle skills."
Soldiers of 6-8 Cav were impressed with the training and how the training was accessible and easy to understand.
"The Canadians did really well in teaching the classes," said Sgt. Thaddeus Deville with Troop C, 6-8 Cav. "They had a lot of experience working with the Ukrainian Soldiers on the weapon systems that they were teaching and were able to pass that knowledge to us."
The training was an opportunity for junior Mustang Soldiers to learn about foreign weapons and work with foreign Soldiers for the first time. The exercise was hands on and gave younger soldiers a chance to get a feel for something different.
"My Soldiers never had the opportunity to play with foreign weapons, so it is a good experience for them to understand what they are going to be using and seeing on the ranges during this training cycle." Deville said. "It gives them a better concept of how these weapons operate and what to expect to see during training."
According to Deville, working with the Canadians gave the Soldiers a better feel for working with a foreign Army. They got professional knowledge on how the Ukrainians operate, which gave them a better idea of how they can approach them as the training cycle begins.
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