NATO wants to better prepare for threats from Moscow. The strengths and weaknesses of the Russian military are to be analyzed in a new center in Poland. Ukraine can provide insights into this.
NATO and Ukraine are jointly building a center for analyzing military experiences from the Russian war of aggression. The unit planned for the central Polish city of Bydgoszcz is intended to make it possible to learn together as efficiently as possible from current war events.
To this end, the Ukrainians could provide information about the tactics, capabilities and weaknesses of the Russian attackers. According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, there will also be joint training.
NATO infrastructure already in place
The decision for the center, called JATEC (Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre), was announced after a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council in Brussels. Ideally, the heads of state and government should give the starting signal for work at the summer summit in Washington.
So far, the exchange of knowledge gained in the defensive war against Russia has taken place, among other things, through the so-called Ukraine Contact Group, through which arms deliveries to Ukraine are also coordinated.
Details such as the exact number of employees at the center are still to be clarified. A completely new NATO infrastructure does not need to be created in Bydgoszcz. NATO’s so-called Joint Force Training Center (JFTC) is already based in the city and is responsible, among other things, for the tactical training of armed forces.
Representative sees psychological Value
A senior NATO official stressed that Ukrainian forces could provide data and information on an unprecedented scale, as there has not been a major war between a Western country and Russia since World War II.
The center could also be psychologically valuable. Passing on experiences from the defensive battle against Russian forces is one of the few opportunities that Ukrainians currently have to give something back, he said, referring to the military and financial support from the West.