The Director General of EUMAM UA in Spain visits military instructors in Cartagena

•  The Navy teaches amphibious modules to Ukrainian military personnel in the town of Murcia

The Director General of the European Union Military Assistance Mission in Support of Ukraine (EUMAM UA), Brigadier General José Agustín Carreras Postigo, has carried out an inspection visit to the modules being developed in Cartagena, where he was able to see their progress for himself.

Specifically, Navy units are leading the Underwater Demining modules in Cartagena, carried out by explosive ordnance disposal divers; and the Combat Swimmer and Visit Board Search Secure (VBSS) modules, carried out by the Special Naval Warfare Force.

The Underwater Demining module aims to enable students to differentiate between explosive and non-explosive objects and take the appropriate safety measures.

For its part, the Combat Swimmer module develops physical and mental endurance, swimming and diving skills, and the ability to carry out missions in hostile aquatic environments for high-intensity, high-risk special operations.

VBSS training focuses on maritime environment actions specific to boarding (maritime interception operations), as well as insertions/infiltrations and extractions/exfiltrations from the sea, in order to carry out actions between maritime and land environments.

The EUMAM-UA operation highlights Spain and the European Union's ongoing commitment to Ukraine's defence and sovereignty.

EUMAM UA, support for Ukraine

The EU Military Assistance Mission in Support of Ukraine (EUMAM UA) was approved by Council Decision on 17 October 2022. Its objective is to strengthen the capacity of the Ukrainian Armed Forces to defend Ukraine's territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders and to deter and respond to possible future military offensives by Russia and other potential aggressors. EUMAM works closely with all other like-minded international partners to provide training support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

EUMAM is also open to participation by third States. All mission activities are carried out on EU soil. To date, 24 EU Member States have offered training modules and personnel to the Ukrainian military.

In Spain, training activities are led by the Toledo Training Coordination Centre (TTCC), under the direction of the Operations Command, on whom it depends organically, and coordinates its activities with different international structures, not only within the European Union, but also within the framework of multinational agreements. Since the beginning of this European mission, Spain has expanded the range of courses now offered in different units of the Spanish Armed Forces.

The TTCC consists of a Headquarters in Burgos, headed by Brigadier General José Agustín Carreras Postigo, commander of the Legion's “Rey Alfonso XIII” II Brigade, on which they depend the Combat Training Unit (UFC) in Toledo (a permanent unit that provides both basic training and various specific courses) and the Training Modules (TM), which are activated to provide instruction in the specialities requested. These courses are held at Army and Navy facilities in various locations throughout Spain.

The Spanish Armed Forces have extensive experience in training personnel from the armed forces and security forces of other countries, such as Iraq, Mali and Somalia, among others. To date, Spain has trained more than 8,300 Ukrainian military personnel in some 200 modules covering different specialities as part of this EUMAM AU mission.