Starved for ammunition, Ukraine could lose more territory to Russia – military expert
Ukrainian military expert and reserve officer Andriy Kramarov highlighted the acute shortage of artilleryand small arms ammunition Ukraine is currently facing, in an interview with NV Radio on Feb. 1.
"The critical issue, known to those closely connected to the front line, is the ammunition shortage, covering all types, primarily for Western weapons," Kramarov said.
"It's not just about the 155 mm artillery shell. There's also a concern about 5.56 × 45 mm — basic ammo for an assault rifle, like the M4. We're grappling with these problems, including shells for IFV [infantry fighting vehicles] guns, tanks, machine guns, and, of course, artillery, along with rocket artillery systems. Unfortunately, this shortage is now reaching a critical point."
He added that while the United States remains in a political deadlock and unable to provide military aid to Ukraine, Germany has become a major supplier of ammunition to Kyiv.
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“Recently, Germany has become more active and is ramping up its production. However, we understand that this is definitely not enough in the scale of this war,” Kramarov continues.
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"As a result, we find ourselves in a challenging situation, especially in terms of time frames. Frankly, we may have enough ammunition in an extreme conservation mode for a month or two."
Finally, the expert said that the dire situation with ammo supplies could see Ukraine losing more territory to ongoing Russian assaults.
"To lose positions that we have fought for so long and effectively..., for example, Kupyansk and Lyman, liberated after our Kharkiv [2022] counteroffensive, could be simply lost due to a lack of ammunition."
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