WASHINGTON, DC. – On Oct. 10, a team representing the Security Assistance Group – Ukraine, or SAG-U, participated in the second day of the Warriors Corner presentations at the Association of the United States Army annual meeting and exposition, located at the at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
"Due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, I was unable to attend AUSA, but it was vitally important to send this talented team of U.S. and international military professionals to tell the story of their training and enabling Ukrainian armed forces/soldiers’ success in beating back the Russians in their illegal war," said the SAG-U Commander, Lt. Gen. Antonio Aguto, Jr.
"It was vitally important to send this talented team of U.S. and international military professionals to tell the story of their training and enabling Ukrainian armed forces/soldiers’ success in beating back the Russians in their illegal war." - Lt. Gen. Antonio Aguto, Jr., SAG-U Commander
The team included Canadian Brig. Gen. Mason Stalker, SAG-U Deputy Commanding General – Training; Command Sgt. Maj. Derrick C. Garner, senior enlisted leader and adviser to the SAG-U commanding general; Col. Bryan M. Harris, commander 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, based at Ft. Riley, Kansas; and Lt. Col. Seth E. Barrett, commander 3rd Battalion, 6th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, based at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma.
Titled “As Long as it Takes: International Efforts to Train Ukraine’s Military,” the presentation first provided an overview of SAG-U and its mission, led by Brig. Gen. Stalker. That mission consists of training and sustaining Ukraine’s military on and with a range of donated systems, as well as tactics, techniques, and procedures. Col. Harris then discussed how his unit facilitated, evaluated, and advised individual and collective training on combined arms maneuver with such combat platforms like the M1A1 Abrams tank and Bradley fighting vehicle. Lt. Col. Barrett focused his remarks on his unit’s efforts to train Ukrainian air defenders on the Patriot missile system.
In overviewing SAG-U’s training efforts, which so far have trained 89,000 Ukrainian soldiers – including 3,800 leaders, across 88 training sites, on three continents involving a donor community of more than 50 nations, Brig. Gen. Stalker quoted the Deputy Command Sergeant Major of the Ukrainian Army, who said, “Success on the battlefield depends on the quality of the training.”
Brig. Gen. Stalker went on to say that the successes Ukraine has seen on the battlefield are a testament to the courage and competence of the Ukrainian soldiers, but also to the quality of training being provided by the coalition of nations coordinated and synchronized by SAG-U.
“A piece of equipment without a competent operator will not give the advantage that is required for Ukraine to fight and win,” Stalker stated. “Understanding how to operate, integrate, maintain and how to conduct combined arms maneuver is where that advantage is created.”
That understanding is what SAG-U trainers seek to imbue in their Ukrainian counterparts with every training engagement.
In tandem with training, according to Brig. Gen. Stalker, is sustainment. The heart of SAG-U’s sustain efforts is the International Coalition Donor Centre (IDCC), SAG-U’s partner in supporting the defense of Ukraine.
The IDCC coordinates resources, through security force assistance pathways, contributed by the international community. Donor countries from around the world provide military equipment and aid to the armed forces of Ukraine, coordinated and synchronized by the IDCC. Through the IDCC, the coalition employs a capability approach to coordinating and receiving donor nation equipment.
By “donor approach” to resource contributions, Brig. Gen. Stalker said, “we mean the totality of a donation, not just a platform by itself.” It might mean one nation donates a platform while others will donate fuel, spare parts, ammunition, etc. “The goal of SAG-U is to take a piece of military kit, or piece of equipment, and turn it into a military capability,” he emphasized.
In his remarks, Col. Harris began by giving context to how his unit became involved in the coalition’s training efforts. On Christmas Day 2022, the Dagger Brigade was notified of the mission to train Ukrainian formations in combined arms maneuver, from the individual up through battalion level.
According to Col. Harris, by Jan. 15, 2023, they were on Europe’s eastern flank and training the first Ukrainian battalion at Grafenwöhr, Germany, on the Bradley fighting vehicle. Over the course of their deployment, they trained four brigades – one Bradley brigade; one Stryker brigade, with the help of 2nd Cavalry Regiment; and two light infantry brigades – in combined arms maneuver, all the way up to a combined arms live fire, day and night. Near the end of their deployment, they trained on the M1A1 Abrams tank. In all, they trained 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers.
“The Ukrainian soldiers were hungry,” said Col. Harris. “They were on simulators all day and night, learning how to operate the [various switches] on the Bradley fighting vehicle. Same thing with the M1A1. It was truly a highlight of my 25-year career to see the Ukrainian company-level combined arms live fire exercises. From what I saw, they absolutely were lethal. They could hit what they were shooting at. They were highly motivated…and asked my team a lot of questions.” He added, “My team was truly honored to be part of their training.”
Up next, Lt. Col. Barrett said that his unit had the “distinct pleasure of training 74 Ukrainian air defenders on Patriot battery operations.”
He noted that the Ukrainian soldiers they received were not like the traditional advanced individual training (AIT) Soldier they train at Ft. Sill. “They were highly experienced. Several operators that had dozens of engagements on the S-300,” a Soviet-era surface-to-air missile system still in use today. “So, their pre-existing air defense skills and knowledge of the fundamentals was way higher than we normally get in the Air Defense school house.”
Lt. Col. Barrett spotlighted three factors that greatly aided the training provided to the Ukrainians. The first was that Ft. Sill provides a world-class and world-leading training environment with simulators not available anywhere else. The second was the community of experts – such as retired air defenders with experience going back to the Gulf War – who assisted the unit’s training. The third was the linguist community.
“We would not have had the success in our training if it were not for the linguists, said Lt. Col. Barrett. “It was truly a herculean effort by the linguist community. We had Soldiers of Ukrainian background who reenlisted – they were going to get out of the Army – and they reenlisted to come help with the Patriot training mission.”
He concluded his remarks by saying, “Training soldiers on the only system in the world that’s ever defeated a hypersonic threat was one of the greatest honors of my career. It was not lost on me the monumental task ahead of them to protect their units and their country on the front line.”
“Training soldiers on the only system in the world that’s ever defeated a hypersonic threat was one of the greatest honors of my career. It was not lost on me the monumental task ahead of them to protect their units and their country on the front line.” - Lt. Col. Seth Barrett, Commander, 6th ADA Regt.
Summing up SAG-U’s presentation, Command Sgt. Maj. Garner – who has visited almost every coalition training site – stated, “SAG-U and the IDCC are a coalition of over 50 nations that trains, equips, sustains, and advises Ukraine. Training, in particular, has translated into real results on the battlefield. From non-commissioned officer leader training, to combined arms maneuver, we are delivering training that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have requested, allowing them a qualitative advantage on the front lines of this war.”
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