Ukrainian Parliament approves deployment of troops abroad

The decree provides for the deployment of relevant units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to Türkiye and the United Kingdom for the duration of martial law.

“In connection with the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, it has become necessary to send and station military personnel on the territory of partner states, which will facilitate the acquisition of complex military equipment and professional mastery of its use,” the explanatory note to the document states.

The law approves the decree of the President of Ukraine of September 19, On the deployment of Armed Forces units to other countries, which specifies that certain Armed Forces units will be deployed to other countries for a period until the termination or cancellation of martial law in Ukraine:

• The corvette of the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Hetman Ivan Mazepa, with a regular crew of up to 106 servicemen, is heading to Türkiye
• The minesweepers Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Mariupol, Melitopol, Henichesk, and the Command of the 1st Division of Minesweepers, with a total of up to 215 military personnel, were sent to the United Kingdom.

Background

On September 22, it became known that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wanted to send Ukrainian troops to Türkiye and the UK for training. The relevant bill was published on the website of the Verkhovna Rada.

As stated in the explanatory note, the security situation in Ukraine requires sending military personnel to other countries for training. However, it is currently impossible to do so by sea, as Türkiye, in accordance with the Montreux Convention, does not open the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits to warring parties.

The adoption of the law will ensure the implementation of measures related to the national security and defense of Ukraine.