Ammunition for Ukraine
▪️Petr Fiala, Czech Prime Minister, said that fifteen countries are ready to join his state's initiative to purchase shells for Ukraine from outside Europe to solve the problem of the shortage of ammunition, particularly artillery shells.
At the Munich Security Conference, Petr Pavel, Czech President, said that the Czechia had found up to 800.000 shells of NATO-standard calibre which can be sent to Ukraine in a few weeks if it receives funding for delivery.
Among the countries supporting his initiative are Canada, Denmark, France, the Netherlands and Portugal, as well as other countries that did not want to be named.
▪️The German Government on February 16 announced a new military aid package which includes 120.000 122-mm artillery rounds. According to the „Spiegel“ these were ordered from Bulgaria and will be handed over to Ukraine in 2024. General Christian Freuding, the head of the Bundeswehr’s Situation Center Ukraine, noted that there is no shortage of money. Germany has allocated about €7 billion for 2024 alone. The main problem remains the availability of ammunition on the world market.
122-mm artillery shells are Soviet-era ammunition. They are used in D-30 howitzers and 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers, which are widely used in the Ukrainian army.
Bulgaria is a producer of shells of this caliber and one of the largest players on the world market in the Soviet weapons niche.
▪️Furthermore, also according to the German newspaper „Der Spiegel“, German officials are holding secret talks with India to purchase ammunition for Ukraine.
India still has relatively large stockpiles of artillery shells (several hundred thousand rounds), but the Indian government, which still maintains cordial relations with Moscow, will not admit to wanting to sell any, if it is indeed willing. Therefore, covert negotiations are underway to see if the ammunition can be obtained through intermediaries.
Similar deals, according to Berlin, are possible with Arab countries and also with states in the Balkans and Africa that still have stockpiles - or may even produce new
ammunition.
▪️French President Emmanuel Macron has announced the creation of a coalition to provide Ukraine with "medium- and long-range missiles and bombs". According to the French newspaper "Le Monde", Macron said Western leaders decided to "create a coalition for deep strikes, and therefore for [supplying Ukraine with] medium- and long-range missiles and bombs."
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