Ukrainian soldiers operating in the Donetsk region complain of a lack of ammunition. “It was not enough before, and now we have almost nothing,” explains Ukrainian soldier Oleksandr. According to him, the current supplies are enough for one mission and half an hour’s work at most.
Soldiers of the 93rd Independent Mechanized Brigade shoot at enemy positions with only a minimum of ammunition. “Thus, we are only delaying them ineffectively. If we had enough, they wouldn’t have gone as far. If we have ammunition, we will at least be able to keep control of what we have. Now we keep losing it. Infantry without artillery is not enough for them,” Oleksandr describes.
Both Ukrainian and Russian troops use heavy artillery fire to maintain largely static, entrenched positions along a thousand-kilometer front line, requiring vast amounts of ammunition. That is why the European Union, together with its Western allies, launched an initiative in March 2023, the aim of which was to supply Ukraine with one million artillery shells within one year.
However, the Ukrainian soldiers received only about half of the expected supply. According to the authorities, insufficient production capacity is to blame, among other things. The situation could also be helped by a Czech initiative, the goal of which is the purchase of artillery ammunition for Ukraine from countries outside the EU.
“We should set up our own production so that we are not dependent on anyone. We will know how many cartridges we have for a month or a day. We will know what to count on. Today we receive five cartridges, tomorrow fifty. How can we then calculate things,” he adds .
According to officials and security analysts, for every shell fired by Ukraine along the front line, there are five to six missiles fired by Russia. This imbalance limits Ukraine’s ability to repel Russian attacks and provide cover for its own troop movements.
