US 'Trainers' Arrive in Ukraine for Operation Fearless Guardian

Nearly 300 U.S. soldiers have arrived in Ukraine to act as ‘trainers’ for the county’s newly-formed National Guard as part of what is being called Operation Fearless Guardian.

The operation involving paratroopers will last for six months, according to a statement by the U.S. Army on Friday.

U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey R. Pyatt tweeted the development:

Canada is also taking part in the operation.

Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a statement Friday rebuking the troops’ arrival.

“The participation of instructors and specialists from a third country on the territory of Ukraine, where an unresolved intra-Ukrainian conflict remains, where problems persist in carrying out the Minsk agreement, is far from helping resolve the conflict. To the contrary, it enables destabilizing the situation,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated.