"[The bill has been] returned with the president's signature," the Verkhovna Rada said.
According to another statement published on the president's website, "a number of Ukrainian-American drills will be held on Ukrainian territory in 2015: 'Fearless Guardian 2015' (up to 1,000 US troops out of 2,200 total), 'Sea Breeze 2015' (up to 1,000 US troops and 500 soldiers from other NATO countries out of 2,500 total), and 'Saber Guardian/Rapid Trident 2015' (up to 500 US troops and 600 soldiers from other NATO countries out of 2,100 total)."
Other countries that have expressed their intention to send military advisers to Ukraine to train its troops include the United Kingdom and Canada.
In early March, Washington announced it had deployed 300 military personnel to Ukraine for a joint training mission at a peacekeeping center near Lviv. Later, US Army Europe Commander Ben Hodges reportedly said that the training of three Ukrainian army battalions had been delayed in order to provide more time for the implementation of the Minsk reconciliation accord.
Apart from a ceasefire agreement between Kiev-led forces and Donbas militias effective since February 15, the peace accord worked out in the Belarusian capital of Minsk in a bid to deescalate an almost year-long armed conflict also calls on all foreign troops and mercenaries to leave Ukraine.
