Elena Buturlim17:48, 01/31/24

Even if help from the EU arrives, Ukrainian troops will feel the lack of American support on the battlefield in late spring.

Ukraine lacks weapons , particularly ammunition, to defend its cities, and vital aid from Europe and the United States is delayed due to political disputes, writes Bloomberg .

With reference to anonymous Western officials, it is noted that the situation at the front is becoming more and more difficult, and the forces of Kyiv are sometimes barely holding back the Moscow troops. To support “active defense,” Ukraine will need a constant supply of artillery shells and other ammunition, which the allies are trying to secure.

Recent waves of Russian missile attacks have also killed dozens of people in Kyiv and other cities as Ukrainian air defenses, which rely heavily on expensive interceptors provided by allies, have failed to destroy as many weapons as before, a European diplomat said.

“European allies will not be able to deliver the 1 million artillery shells they promised to deliver by March 1, having delivered only about 600,000 by that date amid persistent production delays and worries about depleting stocks,” the newspaper writes.

It is indicated that defense ministers, who will meet in Brussels this week, may try to organize other supplies to increase the total, but will still fall short of the specified figure.

Rand Corp. researcher and U.S. Army Reserve officer Anne Marie Daly believes that if Ukrainian troops don’t have the shells to hold the pressure, Russia could continue its artillery attacks and infantry attacks on Ukrainian positions. This is an unfair fight for Ukrainian defenders.

“The challenges come as Ukrainian commanders finalize plans to hold a 600-mile front line this year, probing weaknesses in Russian defenses but failing to make a major breakthrough after last year’s counteroffensive yielded disappointing results,” it said. article.

Western officials say Russian troops are too exhausted to make much progress unless Ukraine’s defenses collapse.

In the US, the $60 billion bailout issue has reached a deadlock, journalists say, although the White House is still assuring Kyiv and other allies that it expects approval eventually.

And EU leaders will gather on February 1 for an emergency summit to try to overcome Hungary’s resistance to providing 50 billion euros ($54 billion) in aid to Ukraine.

“Even if help from the EU arrives, Ukrainian troops will feel the lack of American support on the battlefield at the end of spring, Western diplomats believe,” the authors point out.

For its part, Ukraine uses weapons of its own production for some of the attacks. In addition, according to a Western official, in recent months Kyiv has also created certain reserves of key allied ammunition to ensure supplies to its troops. However, this is not enough to stop Russia and compensate for the shortage of artillery shells.

Bloomberg emphasizes that Kyiv hopes that if allied support is approved, it will be able to restore its strength and increase pressure on Russia. Fighting is likely to subside somewhat over the next few months before resuming in May and June. It is then that the fate of EU and US assistance will become clear. If a solution is not found by then, it will be extremely difficult for Ukraine to maintain its position.

Weapons for Ukraine

According to military and political analyst, ATO veteran Yevgeny Diky, European countries are now trying to make up for the lack of weapons reserves, because there is nothing to give Ukraine for defense against the Russian invasion.

At the end of January, Germany transferred another batch of military aid to Ukraine, which included, in particular, armored vehicles and anti-mine weapons, ammunition and rations for food for the military.

At the same time, in January 2024, the EU promised that  1 million shells would be produced by spring , but the exact date of delivery of these shells to Ukraine was not announced.

(C)UNIAN 2024