BRUSSELS – Ukraine’s Western supporters are hoping improved combat training will help curb Kiev’s voracious demand for ammunition and artillery, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has said.
Ukrainian troops have fired so many shots at invading Russian forces over the past year that countries supporting Kiev have struggled to get enough ammunition fast and have had to increase their arms production.
With little prospect of ramping up ammunition production fast enough to make a difference in the coming weeks, Ukraine’s allies are hoping better tactics and coordination will curb Kiev’s rate of fire. Ukraine is likely to launch some sort of offensive against Russian troops this spring, Mr Austin and others said.
Mr Austin said Tuesday after a meeting of 54 countries supporting Ukraine that allies were “discussing integrating our donations into an integrated training plan”.
He said ongoing Allied training at bases across Europe aims to “emphasize additional maneuver training,” which includes coordinating multiple units for combined attacks involving potentially thousands of troops. With improved coordination, he said, “there’s a good chance they’ll need less artillery ammo, but that remains to be seen.”
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, who showed a handkerchief with a picture of a fighter jet on Monday, said his priorities are training.
Photo: Olivier Matthys/Associated Press
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, who attended the meeting of the so-called Contact Group on Ukrainian Defense, said on Twitter Monday that his priorities were “ensuring sufficient stockpiles of ammunition” and “training the #UAArmy”.
Contact Group discussions took place on Tuesday and meetings will continue on Wednesday with a scheduled meeting of defense ministers from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which Mr. Reznikov will also attend.
The US and other allies have provided Ukraine with billions of dollars in military aid, including what Mr. Austin said is the equivalent of more than eight combat brigades of tanks and other armored fighting vehicles made up of dozens of equipment types.
“It’s a daunting task to bring all these systems together, to train the troops on these platforms… and to bring these systems into combat,” he said. “They are considering an offensive in the spring, and that’s only a few weeks away. And that’s why we have a lot to do.”
The US military is also considering sending Ukraine thousands of seized weapons and more than a million rounds of ammunition once intended for Iran-backed fighters in Yemen, US and European officials said.
As no Western tanks, advanced aircraft or long-range weapons have yet been deployed among Ukrainian fighters, they have operated more like individuals or small brigades than linked military units, officials said. This has led them to use massive amounts of ammo to defend themselves and reclaim territories. A video posted to social media showed what appeared to be a Ukrainian soldier in a trench lined several inches deep with spent machine gun shells.
Ukraine is trying to persuade the West to supply it with F-16s, modern fighter jets capable of flying at twice the speed of sound. Here’s how the planes compare to Russia’s Soviet-designed planes and the difference they could make in war. Figure: Adam Adada
Ukraine’s allies have recently provided or promised more advanced and precise systems. Since mid-January, the US has been training 500 Ukrainian soldiers to maneuver like a Western military battalion in so-called combined arms maneuvers. US officials hope such units, with better command and control, will pool Allied equipment and use less ammunition.
“By wielding combined arms, there’s a chance you’re reducing your ammo use because you’re fighting differently,” said a US defense official. Reducing ammo consumption “is a useful by-product [of] the focus on helping them prepare for the counteroffensive.”
Ukraine inflicted significant casualties on Moscow troops over the past year while consuming limited resources by firing satellite-guided missiles from mobile M142 Himars launchers at Russian supply depots and command centers. The precision of the missiles allowed them to efficiently hit high-value targets.
Russia eventually responded by moving its facilities out of range of the Himars missiles. The US pledged earlier this year to supply Ukraine with long-range missiles.
write to Daniel Michaels at [email protected] and Nancy A. Youssef at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8