The ceremonial handover of the canines to Ukrainian handlers took place on Nov. 9 at Poland’s Carpathian Border Guard Regional Unit Center in Nowy Sącz, according to the report.
Prior to delivery, the dogs underwent specialized training in EU countries, including Finland, Belgium, and Luxembourg.
“Ukraine is facing a significant challenge, one that nobody has encountered before: the task of clearing all territories where explosive devices are present,” European Commission representative Martin Schieffer stated during the handover.
“This area is as large as the combined territories of Austria, Denmark, and the Netherlands.”
In addition to the mine detection dogs, Ukraine also received specialized search drones from the EU, which help scout and detect landmines and other explosive devices.