The Ukrainian military is trained in Scotland, where they master the operation of Sandown Class minesweepers. This is a continuation of last year’s procurement contract on two vessels from the UK.

The training is a part of the UK’s assistance to Ukraine in the war against Russia.

The training area was visited by Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Volodymyr Havrylov and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces of Great Britain James Heappey, the BBC writes.

For security reasons, the exact location is not being revealed.

The Ukrainian military is learning weapon drills, damage control and how to operate the machinery on the vessels.

Volodymyr Gavrilov thanked his colleagues for supporting Ukraine.

“I saw the brotherhood of Ukrainian and British soldiers working together to achieve a common goal — strengthening the combat capabilities of the Ukrainian army… We are very grateful to the government and people of the United Kingdom for their invaluable contribution to Ukraine’s success in repelling the Russian aggressors,” Havrylov said.

A Royal Navy mine hunter captain involved in the training in Scotland stressed that working with his Ukrainian counterparts was a privilege.

“It’s clearly a very difficult situation in Ukraine at the moment. We all understand the urgency of the task at hand. So it’s a professional privilege to be working with the Ukrainian navy, who are incredibly focused on getting the job done. And that’s motivating for my team to be able to give them the best training we possibly can,” he said.

The ministers also visited one of the locations where Ukrainian soldiers were being trained in “battle-winning skills” in a new UK-led military programme.

More than 1,000 British troops working at training ranges across the country are involved in the exercise. James Heappey noted the intensity of the exercises and the motivation of the Ukrainian military.

Recall that in November 2021, the Ambassador of Ukraine to the UK Vadym Prystaiko signed the Ukrainian-British agreement, which provides for the allocation of funds for the construction of eight missile boats, the acquisition of two minesweepers and the construction of two naval bases.

Later, the Ukrainian Navy began to form crews for Sandown Class minesweepers.

Sandown Class Minehunter

Sandown-class minesweepers are in service with the United Kingdom (9), Estonia (3) and Saudi Arabia (3). The first vessel was commissioned in 1989. All Sandown-class vessels are scheduled to be decommissioned from the British fleet during the 2020s.

The hull is made of reinforced fiberglass. Vessels do not have equipment for minesweeping. The only role is to search and destroy mines using remotely controlled search vehicles. A secondary role is the patrol ship.

Vessel specifications:

Displacement: 600 t (590 long tons; 660 short tons)
Length: 52.5 m (172 ft 3 in)
Beam: 10.9 m (35 ft 9 in)
Draught: 2.3 m (7 ft 7 in)
Speed: 13 kn (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement: 34 sailors (accommodation for up to 40)
Armament:
1 × 30mm DS30M Mark 2 Automated Small Caliber Gun
3 × Miniguns
2 × General purpose machine guns
Special equipment: Atlas Elektronik IMCMS automated countermine warfare control system.