Ukraine's allies have almost collected all the funds for 800,000 artillery shells that can be delivered to it within a few weeks, Bloomberg reported, citing the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN.
Exact timing will depend on contracts and delivery schedules. The Czech Republic will act as an intermediary between governments willing to finance the purchase of ammunition, which will then be sent to Ukraine. Czech President Petr Pavel told the Munich Security Conference last month that his country had identified 500,000 155mm rounds and 300,000 122mm rounds that could be delivered within weeks if the money was released.
Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada and France support the Czech Republic's plan to buy ammunition from outside the European Union, and Poland has expressed interest. A separate discussion of the details is expected to take place this week with the EU's defense and foreign affairs ministers. Germany has decided to join the Czech initiative, which provides for the purchase of 800,000 ammunition for Ukraine, the representative of the German government, Steffen Hebestrei, said in Berlin. It is estimated that Ukraine needs at least 200,000 shells per month to continue the fight. The average daily use of shells by the Russian troops is three to five times more than the capabilities of the Ukrainian troops. /BGNES
