The attack on the base in Western Ukraine was not ‘random,’ and it surely must have been considered a likely target
Photo: Ukrainian soldiers and American National Guard soldiers last month during a training in the use of American-provided M141 bunker defeat munitions at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center near Yavoriv, Ukraine.Credit…Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times
14 March 2022 | James Porteous | Clipper Media News
International Peacekeeping and Security Center
Also known as the Yavoriv military training ground of the Ground Forces of Ukraine
13 March 2022 | AJE
Russian air strikes have hit a Ukrainian military training base outside the western city of Lviv near the Polish border, leaving many people dead and wounded – although there was significant discrepancy in the figures provided by Ukraine and Russia.
Ukrainian officials said there had been an increase in civilian evacuations from cities under Russian bombardment on Sunday and that a relief convoy was attempting to enter the besieged city of Mariupol.
Lviv’s governor said at least 35 people were killed and 134 others wounded as more than 30 cruise missiles from Russia hit the Yavoriv military training facility, also known as the International Peacekeeping and Security Center.
However, Russia’s Defence Ministry Spokesperson Igor Konashenkov has said the strikes had killed “up to 180 foreign mercenaries” and destroyed a large amount of weapons supplied by foreign nations.
The facility served as a crucial hub for cooperation between Ukraine and the NATO countries supporting Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s invasion. It was the most western attack since Russia launched its military campaign in Ukraine on February 24.
The international airport in Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine was also hit by a missile, according to the city’s mayor.
International Peacekeeping and Security Centre (IPSC) (2016)
Location: Lviv, Ukraine
Website: http://www.asv.gov.ua/?q=en/ipsc
Type: Military
The IPSC was formed in 2007 in order to aid in the training of personnel from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, particularly for peacekeeping missions. It also provides training to foreign state military units which provide forces to peacekeeping missions and in the fight against terrorism.
The three main courses are for:
- HQ officers
- instructors of peacekeeping units
- instructors for CIED
The course for instructors in CIED has been conducted yearly since 2007 and is held in cooperation with NATO. Those trained range from sergeant to lieutenant colonel and are trained to take part in multinational peacekeeping operations.
A mix of learning resources are used and though studying material and aids are used, a large component of the course in based on the practical experience learnt about CIED in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The base attacked in western Ukraine has been a hub for foreign militaries.
13 March 2022 | Austin Ramzy | New York Times
The base outside Lviv that was attacked by Russian forces early on Sunday was a key link between Ukraine’s armed forces and Western militaries before the war — and has become an important logistics hub and training center for foreign fighters since Russia’s invasion began.
A Ukrainian military official said that up to 1,000 foreign fighters were training at the base — the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, which is also known as the Yavoriv military complex — as part of the new International Legion that Ukraine has formed to help fight Russia.
Before the war, troops from the United States, Britain, Canada, Poland, Latvia and other Western allies trained Ukrainian forces there, starting in the 1990s.
One of the buildings that was hit in the attack was in an area where American, Canadian and other foreign military instructors had stayed before the invasion, according to a broadcast journalist for the U.S. Army who covered multinational training at the base.
Dozens of soldiers from the Florida Army National Guard had been training Ukrainian troops at the base as part of a NATO mission until Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III ordered them to leave the country last month, days before the Russian invasion.
The base has also trained troops for peacekeeping operations that Ukraine has participated in, often as part of United Nations missions elsewhere in Europe and in Africa. Since the war began, Ukraine has recalled those peacekeepers, including a helicopter unit that had been deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Marc Santora and Yousur Al-Hlou contributed reporting.
Austin Ramzy is a Hong Kong reporter, focusing on coverage of the city and also of regional and breaking news. He previously covered major events around Asia from Taipei and Beijing. @austinramzy
Military Footage Archive – MFA
Exercise Rapid Trident 2014 at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center in Ukraine
This Ukraine army training video is from Exercise Rapid Trident 2014. Soldiers from 15 nations participated in this combat training exercise at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center in Ukraine.
Approximately 1,300 troops from 15 countries including, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Canada, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Romania, Spain, the U.S., and host Ukraine participated in this combat exercise.
Rapid Trident is an annual U.S. Army Europe-conducted, Ukrainian-led multinational exercise designed to enhance interoperability with allied and partner nations while promoting regional stability and security.
Communications Department of the Secretariat of the CMU, posted 21 August 2021 17:01
The Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal together with the Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili visited the Yavoriv International Peacekeeping and Security Center, on August 21, during a working trip to Lviv region.
The Heads of Government toured the Center and got familiarized with the NATO-standard combat planning process. Denys Shmyhal and Irakli Garibashvili also got acquainted with the IPSC training facilities and modern models of small arms and weapons.
“Yavoriv training range is one of two in Ukraine where international military exercises take place. Since the beginning of the Russian aggression, units of the Armed Forces and the National Guard have been actively training here. In total, the Center trains about 20,000 military according to NATO standards. This is a significant contribution to strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities,” the Prime Minister of Ukraine stressed.
Denys Shmyhal added that joining forces in strengthening security is of paramount importance for the common Euro-Atlantic future of Ukraine and Georgia.
Background
The Yavoriv International Peacekeeping and Security Center, better known as the Yavoriv Military Range, is a training range in western Ukraine located 30 km northwest of Lviv in the Yavoriv district.
Since 1995, the Peace Shield international military exercise has been held on the territory of the military range within the framework of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program, which is conducted jointly by Ukraine and NATO.
The Partnership for Peace Training Center is designed to provide and conduct training exercises for national contingents and national personnel (military observers, staff officers) to participate in international peacekeeping and security operations, as well as units of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations.
What is Exercise Rapid Trident?
The annual exercise Rapid Trident is a culminating event for Ukrainian troops and validates the development of the Yavoriv Combat Training Center at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, which is under the mentorship of the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine.
RT20 has been re-scheduled to take place in September 2020, after it was modified in size, scope, scenario and timing due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak and the resulting precautionary measures. RT20 will be executed to the fullest extent possible to preserve the health and safety of Ukrainian, ally, partner, and U.S. forces.
RT20 is a Ukrainian-hosted, U.S. Army Europe-exercise designed to enhance joint interoperability among allied and partner nations. Rapid Trident demonstrates that the U.S., our allies and partner nations are poised and ready to respond to any crisis.
LVIV, UKRAINE
11.30.2021
Photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes
53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team
Soldiers in the Ukrainian Armed Forces listen to a M141 munitions system training brief at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, Feb. 3, 2022. U.S. Soldiers assigned to Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine provide advisory guidance on Combat Training Center-Yavoriv methodology and training doctrine development to their Ukrainian peers, furthering the self-sufficient training capabilities offered at IPSC to Ukrainian Armed Forces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes)
LVIV, UKRAINE
11.30.2021
Photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes
53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team
Sgt. 1st Class Jason Haigh, from Task Force Gator, 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Florida Army National Guard, currently assigned to Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine, provides an example while advising on teaching tactics with Ukrainian Observer Controller/Trainers at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, Feb. 3, 2022. U.S. Soldiers provide advisory guidance on Combat Training Center-Yavoriv methodology and training doctrine development to their Ukrainian peers, furthering the self-sufficient training capabilities offered at IPSC to Ukrainian Armed Forces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes)
LVIV, UKRAINE
11.30.2021
Photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes
53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team
Staff Sgt. David Blackwell, from Task Force Gator, 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Florida Army National Guard, currently assigned to Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine, discusses teaching tactics with Ukrainian Observer Controller/Trainers at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, Feb. 3, 2022. U.S. Soldiers provide advisory guidance on Combat Training Center-Yavoriv methodology and training doctrine development to their Ukrainian peers, furthering the self-sufficient training capabilities offered at IPSC to Ukrainian Armed Forces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes)
LVIV, UKRAINE
11.30.2021
Photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes
53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team
Staff Sgt. David Blackwell, and Staff Sgt. Corey Burnett from Task Force Gator, 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Florida Army National Guard, currently assigned to Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine, discusses teaching tactics with Ukrainian Observer Controller/Trainers at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, Feb. 3, 2022. U.S. Soldiers provide advisory guidance on Combat Training Center-Yavoriv methodology and training doctrine development to their Ukrainian peers, furthering the self-sufficient training capabilities offered at IPSC to Ukrainian Armed Forces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Spencer Rhodes)
Pairs Movement Training at Yavoriv Combat Training Center
YAVORIV, UKRAINE
05.15.2017
Video by Sgt. Anthony Jones
45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team
B-Roll of pairs movement training at the Yavoriv Combat Training Center on the International Peacekeeping and Security Center, near Yavoriv, Ukraine, on May 15.
Yavoriv CTC staff, along with mentors from the U.S. Army’s 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, led pairs movement training for soldiers from the 1st Air Mobile Battalion, 79th Air Assault Brigade during the battalion’s rotation through the Yavoriv CTC. The 45th is deployed to Ukraine as part of the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine, an international coalition dedicated to improving the CTC’s capabilities and building professionalism within the Ukrainian army. (Photo by Sgt. Anthony Jones, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team)
