WASHINGTON (AP) — Eight weeks into the war, the Biden administration’s decision to dramatically accelerate shipments of artillery pieces to Ukraine signals deepened American engagement at a crucial stage in the struggle for the country’s industrial heartland.
It also clearly spells out Moscow’s warning that continued US military aid to Ukraine would have “unpredictable” consequences, suggesting that Russia views the international wave of arms as a growing obstacle to its invasion, as well as a Western provocation.
“We are now at a critical window,” President Joe Biden said Thursday when he announced he had approved an additional $800 million in battlefield aid, including 72 of the US Army’s 155mm howitzers and 144,000 artillery shells and more than 120 armed drones requiring training for Ukrainian operators.
This amounts to $3.4 billion in security aid provided since the invasion of Russia began on February 24. That is an extraordinary total of US military assistance to a country to which the United States has no obligations under a defense treaty.
A look at US aid and US expectations of what it will achieve:
WHY IS ARTILLERY SO IMPORTANT NOW?
Heavy weapons such as artillery are emerging as a key element in the unfolding battle for Ukraine’s eastern region known as Donbass. The relatively flat terrain lends itself to what the military calls maneuver warfare – the movement of tanks and other ground forces supported by long-range guns like the 155mm howitzer.
The Russians have deployed their own additional artillery in the Donbass region in recent days, along with more ground forces and other materiel to support and sustain a potentially lengthy battle for terrain in Ukraine’s industrial heartland.
The howitzers that the US is sending to Ukraine will be the latest American model, known as the M777, used by the Army and Marine Corps. Smaller and more maneuverable than the older model, the M777 can be deployed to the battlefield using heavy-lift helicopters and moved relatively quickly between positions using seven-ton trucks, also provided by the Pentagon.
“What makes it important is the kind of fighting we expect in Donbass. Because of the terrain, because it’s open, because it’s flat, because it’s not that urban, we can expect the Russians to rely on long-range fire – especially artillery,” said John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary. “So we know this will be part of the Russians’ playbook.”
A senior US defense official said the first of the 72 howitzers is expected to be deployed to Europe this weekend. Of 18 other 155mm howitzers Biden approved for shipment to Ukraine last week, an unspecified number are already in Europe, and U.S. howitzer training for Ukrainian personnel began in an undisclosed country outside of Ukraine on Wednesday Ukraine.
IS THIS ENOUGH TO STOP THE RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE?
Probably not, and Biden said he’s already asked the Pentagon to work on additional potential military support.
Biden said this phase of the Russian invasion will be “more limited geographically, but not in terms of brutality.” He also acknowledged that he needs Congress to approve the funds needed to continue supplying Ukraine beyond the latest $800 million package, which he said provide a steady flow of arms would only ensure for the next few weeks.
US officials say the Russians are trying to adjust their modus operandi in Ukraine after early setbacks, suggesting the battle could be long.
After failing to take the capital Kyiv in the first weeks of its multi-pronged invasion, Russia has since narrowed its targets, focusing on the Donbass, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting since 2014, and a stretch of coast along the Donbass Sea of Azov from Mariupol to the Crimean Peninsula. A Russian advantage is this region’s proximity to Russian territory, allowing for shorter supply routes than previous battles in northern Ukraine.
WHAT ELSE DOES THE USA OFFER?
In addition to the 72 howitzers and the vehicles needed to transport them on the battlefield, the new weapons package for Ukraine includes artillery shells and armed drones from US Air Force stocks. A wide range of items remain in the pipeline from a separate $800 million weapons package announced just last week, including radars capable of targeting Russian artillery, as well as aerial surveillance radars and coastal unmanned drone vessels .
“Artillery and drones are exactly what Ukraine will need as Russia embarks on its next campaign in the East and South,” said Mark Montgomery, a retired Navy rear admiral who previously served with US European Command to improve US-Ukrainian operations military relations served. Montgomery is now an analyst with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
The drone included in the latest pack is called the Phoenix Ghost and is made by a US company, Aevex Aerospace, which bills itself as a leader in “full-spectrum airborne intelligence solutions.” Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, declined to describe the drone’s capabilities other than that it is used “largely, but not exclusively, to attack targets.” It also has onboard cameras.
Kirby said the drones are particularly well suited to the terrain on which Ukrainians are fighting in Donbass.