Finland hands over batch of combat boats to Ukraine, 50 Ukrainian soldiers to be trained on them in Romania – media
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis told the Romanian parliament on Monday that he had approved the training of about 50 Ukrainian soldiers, the Romanian Defense and Security Monitor portal reported.
According to the publication, the Romanian army will train the Ukrainian military on ships received from Finland, and then will contribute these ships to Ukraine.
"In October, the Finnish Ministry of Defense sent a letter to the Romanian Minister of National Defense, in which it said that it wanted to transfer the equipment to Ukraine, and asked Romania to provide support in transit through its national territory, as well as organizing training events for Ukrainian crews who will receive and operate the donated equipment," Iohannis told the Romanian parliament on February 14.
According to him, the Finnish side also requested the provision of free logistical support for Ukrainian personnel, including accommodation, transport, food, fuel necessary for the operation of boats.
Iohannis did not tell the parliament on which equipment the Ukrainian military would be trained in Romania, but, as the ezine notes, he talked about boats.
"At the moment, the United Kingdom, Sweden and the United States have provided Ukraine with various types of warships, the latest of which is Sweden, which on February 20 announced the transfer of ten CB-90 amphibious assault boats and 20 high-speed G-boats, as well as underwater weapons. Finland uses landing craft similar to the Swedish ones, and it is possible that they are of the same type," the ezine says.
The Finnish state broadcaster Yle reported this with reference to a Romanian source, saying that the Finnish authorities had not disclosed the content of military assistance to Ukraine.
"The Finnish Navy includes, among other things, landing ships of the Jehu class and transport ships of the Jurmo and Uisco classes," Yle said.
As reported, in early February, Finland sent the 22nd package of military assistance in the amount of up to EUR 190 million and announced the preparation of a long-term support plan for Ukraine. The transferred package includes equipment and products manufactured in Finland, while "separate financing in the amount of EUR 30 million will be allocated to support Ukraine."
