Why is Ukraine suffering from a shell shortage Liberation

Why is Ukraine suffering from a shell shortage? Liberation

CheckNews

Article reserved for subscribers

War between Ukraine and RussiaDossierThe difference in firepower between Kiev and Moscow is clearly noticeable on the Ukrainian side. The reason: the low ammunition production on the west side, the announced increase in which is only occurring slowly.

Several thousand a day, hundreds of thousands every month: trench warfare in Ukraine, like the First World War before it, is primarily a huge grenade gallery. This summer, Ukraine fired nearly 200,000 shells per month at Russian forces during its counteroffensive, compared with 100,000 previously, according to RUSI, a British military research organization. Kiev then “gained superiority in shooting for the first time,” explains Jack Watling, a researcher at the institute. But since then the number of fire reports has dropped to one in five or even one in ten, depending on the day. In other words, when the Ukrainians throw one grenade, the Russians return five or ten.

“The Ukrainians fired up to 10,000 shells per day during the counteroffensive, but today the rate is well below that,” Camille Grand, former deputy secretary general of NATO and now a researcher, confirmed to CheckNews. at ECFR (European Council on Foreign). Affairs). “Partly because the pace of operations is not the same given the winter, and secondly because they seem to be running out of ammunition.” The daily rate of fire on the Ukrainian side would now be 2,000, compared to 10,000 to 20,000 for the Russians, or 60,000 shells per month on the Ukrainian side, approx