Ukraine has renewed its appeal to Western countries for fighter jets to help counter Moscow’s invasion. However, the United States and its NATO allies and partners are more concerned about Kyiv’s needs for large amounts of ammunition as the war with Russia is set to enter its second year.
Ahead of the meeting of the Ukraine contact group at NATO headquarters, Ukraine made its requirements clear. Defense Minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, when asked what military aid his country is seeking now, showed reporters an image of a fighter jet.
Questioned about where he hoped they might come from, Reznikov said only; “From the sky.”
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pushed hard for combat planes last week when he visited London, Paris and Brussels on his second foreign trip since Russia invaded on February 24, 2022. That plea came days after Western allies pledged to provide Kyiv with tanks.
What NATO allies have on their mind, though, is how to keep up a steady supply of ammunition to Ukraine without depleting their own stockpiles.
According to some estimates, Ukraine is firing up to 6,000-7,000 artillery shells each day, around a third of the daily amount that Russia is using.
“The war in Ukraine is consuming an enormous amount of munitions and depleting allied stockpiles,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg disclosed on Monday, February 13, 2023.
“The current rate of Ukraine’s ammunition expenditure is many times higher than our current rate of production. This puts our defense industries under strain.”
Jens Stoltenberg
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg also urged Ukraine’s Western allies to step up their military support.
Asked when he expects Russia’s so-called spring offensive to begin, Stoltenberg said that “the reality is that we have seen the start already.”
“For me, this just highlights the importance of timing. It’s urgent to provide Ukraine with more weapons,” he told reporters in Brussels.
Stoltenberg said that NATO sees “no sign whatsoever that President Putin is preparing for peace” and that arming Ukraine more quickly could save lives by bringing a quicker end to the conflict.
Moscow’s forces have been pressing in the east of Ukraine while bolstering their defensive lines in the south. The war has been largely static during the winter months, though both sides are expected to launch offensives when the weather improves.
Finding Ammunition Is “Much More Important At The Moment”
German Defense Minister, Boris Pistorius has opined that finding ammunition and air defenses is “much more important at the moment than the discussion about fighter jets.”
Pistorius voiced to reporters that getting pilots up to speed on new aircraft and “training just to fly them takes several months, never mind teaching the abilities needed to deploy the weapons systems.”
Pistorius iterated that Ukraine’s partners “should focus on what is now at center stage, particularly in view of a Russian offensive that is apparently taking place.”
The Defense Minister added that Germany has signed a deal to produce ammunition for self-propelled, anti-aircraft guns it provided to Ukraine, after Kyiv ran into problems finding munitions elsewhere.
That ammunition is crucial for Kyiv to counter Russian attacks, especially on Ukraine’s power infrastructure aimed at disrupting heating and drinking water supply.
NATO members and Ukraine’s other allies are meeting at the alliance’s headquarters today, February 14, 2023 under U.S. supervision to drum up more weapons and ammunition for the war-torn country.
Many NATO allies are bilaterally supplying weapons to Ukraine, but NATO as an organization only provides non-lethal aid.
U.S. Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin and his counterparts are scheduled to separately hold talks with Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Oleksiy Reznikov in the evening. On Wednesday, February 15, 2023, they will discuss NATO’s defenses on its eastern flank, close to Russia. Moves to increase military budgets are also on the agenda.
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