As the war enters its third year on February 24, the Ukrainian army is demanding 500,000 additional troops to compensate for its losses and relieve the wear and tear of its troops on the ground.

But this request clashes with political power in kyiv.

A controversial bill on mobilization has remained blocked in Parliament for several weeks.

Ukrainian civilians, however, continue to mobilize to serve their country, and most have no military experience.

To train them, kyiv can count on the EU Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (Eumam) – a training program set up by the European Union in October 2022. Some 35,000 soldiers have already been trained in one of the 24 countries participating in this mission.

We went to one of these centers in Spain.

An hour from Madrid, the Toledo military academy welcomes a contingent of 200 future Ukrainian soldiers every five weeks.

Farmers, workers, executives... These men and women come from all walks of life.

Sometimes disoriented by this new environment, they are eager to acquire the techniques that will allow them to survive on the front.

Shooting, mine clearance, urban combat... Five weeks of training to learn everything

Spanish instructors have only five weeks to teach the basics of shooting, urban combat or mine clearance.

They face several problems: the age of the soldiers – 40 years on average – and the language, which they do not master.

To communicate with recruits, instructors are supported at all times by translators.

The Ukrainian volunteers are motivated, it only takes a few days for an esprit de corps to develop.

"Five weeks is not a lot, but it's all we have. The days are long because they have to assimilate a lot of techniques. And the first week is dedicated to getting back into shape, because most of them are not in good shape. physical condition", explains Lieutenant Angel, who supervises them in the field.

At the ceremony marking the end of their training, each soldier receives a cross blessed at the shrine of Our Lady of Fatima and an image of Saint Michael, the patron saint of kyiv.

Like a talisman to protect them on the front.

For security reasons, the soldiers' faces are blurred in the subject.

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