A top Ukrainian commander warned that Kiev’s ammunition depots are running low, causing military leaders to reassess operations. The statement comes as the White House says it only has funding for one more weapons package for Ukraine.
Ukrainian Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi said on Monday that the military was “replanning” its efforts due to shell shortages seen “across the entire front line.” He called the shortage a “very big problem.”
“There’s a problem with ammunition, especially post-Soviet (shells)—that’s 122mm, 152mm. And today these problems exist across the entire front line,” Tarnavskyi explained. “The volumes that we have today are not sufficient for us today, given our needs.”
“So, we’re redistributing it. We’re replanning tasks that we had set for ourselves and making them smaller, because we need to provide for them,” he added. Tarnavskyi went on to note that Ukraine was scaling back some offensive operations.
Kiev is currently ordering its troops to attempt to establish a foothold on the eastern shore of the Dnieper River in southern Ukraine. A soldier engaged in the battle said. “It’s not even a fight for survival. It’s a suicide mission.” He continued, “I did not see anything like this in Bakhmut or Soledar. It’s so wasteful.”
Ukraine’s western backers are producing fewer shells than Ukraine is using. Washington depleted its 155MM shells stockpile, resulting in Biden sending Kiev cluster munitions. Throughout the conflict, Western leaders have pushed Ukraine to use fewer artillery shells. However, Kiev has continued to use shells at a high rate and complained that their Western backers do not understand the current battlefield.
The White House said it only has funds for one more weapons shipment to Ukraine. Congress has allocated over $100 billion for the White House to arm Ukraine and fund the government in Ukraine. However, with the funds nearly exhausted, the Biden administration is demanding Congress pass another $60 billion in funds to support Kiev.
