Military mission geared to improve Ukrainian NCO corps (01/25/98)

Military mission geared to improve Ukrainian NCO corps

by Roman G. Golash

CHICAGO - A U.S. military delegation visited Kyiv on November 16-23, 1997, to evaluate the needs of the Ukrainian Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) corps. The NCO corps, consisting of sergeants of various ranks, is an integral part of the U.S. military. Ukraine is attempting to change from the Soviet style to a more Western style structure of enlisted rank and is willing to train its soldiers in the U.S. This training would also enable the Ukrainian armed forces to become more integrated on peacekeeping missions, such as in Bosnia.

Col. Thomas Brown, who led the delegation, currently serves as the commandant of the U.S. Army Sergeant Major Academy (USASMA), in El Paso, Texas. Sgt. Maj. Danny Hubbard serves as department chief at USASMA. Sgt. Maj. Thomas Wong teaches at the academy and Master Sgt. Fred Couch is an expert in U.S. Army doctrine as it pertains to training. Since the state of California and the California National Guard have been delegated to work with Ukraine, Command Sgt. Maj. Raul Rodriguez came as an observer; he is responsible for 19,000 troops in California and for facilitating missions to Ukraine such as Peace Shield '98. The interpreter for the mission was Maj. Roman G. Golash of the 4221st Medical Detachment located in Illinois. The American Embassy in Ukraine provided two facilitators: Capt. Robert Webster and Sgt. 1st Class Alan Kosowiec. Upon arrival the delegation was greeted by Ukrainian hosts Col. V. Shevchuk, acting chief of the motorized tank forces directorate, and Col. I. Tsytles, chief of junior experts training group.

During the first day the delegation met with Maj. Gen. A. Ogarok, the commandant of the Kyiv Military Institute for Ground Forces. At the institute the delegation also met 12 young NCOs who were competing for six slots. The chosen six will travel to the U.S. for English-language training, as well as to attend an NCO academy, followed by attachment to a U.S. combat unit and return for more classroom training.

On the way back to Ukraine, the six Ukrainian soldiers will spend a month in Vilsak, Germany, home of the 3rd Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division. In Vilsak, they will learn about NATO, peacekeeping missions and rules of engagement as they pertain to working with other member-nations. They will be assigned to the Ukrainian peacekeeping battalion in Bosnia. .

Col. F. Makavchuk, chief of the 169th training center in Desna, welcomed the delegation the following day. The 169th prepares and trains enlisted personnel to command tanks. Desna also had a Warrant Office School. Col. Brown and the delegation learned the training formats and also attended actual tank maneuvers. The delegation also visited the 72nd Motorized Division in Bila Tserkva, south of Kyiv, and were greeted by a military band and with the traditional offering of bread and salt.

The Ukrainian military has a problem retraining enlisted personnel. Most of the enlisted have been drafted and stay on active duty only for the obligatory 15 months. It is difficult to develop a leadership cadre with inexperienced troops. On the other hand, officers are usually more inclined to stay in the military. Ukrainian NCOs are trained in special training facilities, or they can go through a 30-day intensive course with the unit to which they are assigned. The U.S. military has four NCO academies with numerous training opportunities.

The question of which language to use during the delegation visit, Russian or Ukrainian, was still an issue, but since the U.S. delegation had a Ukrainian interpreter, Ukrainian was used most of the time.

It is in the national interest of the United States to continue these missions to Ukraine. More than 75 missions and exchanges have taken pace in a little more than a year. These missions will continue in 1998 and hopefully will help Ukraine develop a strong military, one willing and able to withstand any threat.

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