The Commander of the Finnish Army visited Ukraine in March 2025

The Commander of the Finnish Army, Lieutenant General Pasi Välimäki, visited Ukraine last week. During the visit, he met with the leadership of the Ukrainian Land Forces and learned about their training programs, facilities, and the command and control structures at various levels.

– During the visit, I noticed how the Ukrainian Land Force´s training program has improved, particularly by Lessons Learned / Lessons Identified process from the battlefield over the past two years. I was truly impressed by how systematically and quickly the forces and training centres adapts to changes on the battlefield. They have developed their leadership and combat systems in an innovative and cost-effective manner, and effectively integrate these with new technology and techniques, says Lieutenant General Pasi Välimäki.

At the training centers, alongside the basic and specialized training of soldiers, the focus was especially on drones, a variety of unmanned systems, electronic warfare, and conventional use of fires.

– The core elements of basic training include “shoot, move and communicate” skills which are very similar to our own. The most significant changes on the front lines include the constant threat of drones (FPV and munition carriers), electronic warfare, the threat of landmines, medical support and logistics. We will now intensify the exchange of information regarding training and lessons learned from the battlefield.

During the visit, the Ukrainian approach to training, equipping, repairing, maintaining, and operating various unmanned systems was discussed in detail. The assembly and repair of the unmanned equipment must be done on the front lines by the soldiers themselves.

– The reasons for the expanded use of drones were not surprising. For example, in defensive battle, the mass use of inexpensive drones is a highly cost-effective and quick way to inflict losses with precision. At the same time, as different drones are introduced, consideration must be given to the development of counter-weapons, the speed of technological advancement, and the scalability of wartime production.

In the command posts engaged in battle, discussions took place about the battles of the past few weeks, and the execution of ongoing missions was monitored across multiple fronts. The confidence of the commanders, staff, and troops in their skills and capabilities is strong.

– At various Land Forces command posts, it was clear that we use the very similar or same processes and practices for operational planning and conduct of battles and engagements. The adoption of new systems and technologies has created a greater need for faster and more frequent updating of deployed systems and information integration.

The hosts showed their gratitude and appreciation repeatedly for Finland's support to Ukraine. Seeing the true value of this support firsthand was one key aspect of the visit.