According to Sky News journalists, Russia is almost three times ahead of its Western partners in the rate of production of artillery ammunition.
How the rates of production and supply of ammunition from Western partners affect the situation in Ukraine
Journalists of the publication, referring to the calculations of analysts of the consulting company Bain & Company, warn of a serious problem in the Ukrainian military because it relies on supplies of artillery shells from EU countries and the USA.
The article emphasises that the criminal war unleashed by the Kremlin against Ukraine was described from the very beginning as an artillery confrontation due to the large amount of ammunition used.
It forced Western partners to seek to increase munitions production at their defence enterprises.
However, despite Western countries' advantage in economic potential over the aggressor state, Russia is still ahead of the West in the production rate of artillery ammunition.
The Ukrainian military on the front lines says that for every one of their shots, the Russian occupiers can fire at least five in response.
Because of this, the Ukrainian military has learned to achieve success using a much smaller amount of ammunition.
Often with one, two or three shells, we can completely destroy the target, emphasised the commander of the artillery battery of the 57th brigade, senior lieutenant Kostyantyn, who is participating in repelling the offensive of the Russian invaders in the Kharkiv region.
According to him, the Ukrainian military needs additional supplies of ammunition.
According to the study, this year, about 4.5 million artillery shells are likely to be produced and refurbished in Russia, compared to the total production of about 1.3 million shells in the EU countries and the USA.
It is noted that the cost of producing one 155-mm projectile of the NATO standard is about 4 thousand dollars, while the production of a 152-mm projectile costs Russia about a thousand dollars.
It is emphasised that the problem is also the fact that the Ukrainian military is forced to simulate gunshots as part of the exercises.
They use ammunition for the first time and are already on the battlefield.
What kind of ammunition does the Ukrainian military need?
We lack N-LAW and we need more. We would like to thank our Western partners for their help. But, if possible, we would be very grateful if they could provide more ammunition to NATO, admits the AFU military officer with the call sign "Bolt".
Philip McBride, managing director of Thales Belfast, said N-LAW's production capacity had doubled since the start of the year and could be doubled again.
He noted that these munitions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are supplied by the Ministry of Defense of Great Britain.
Another factor is that getting the parts needed for N-LAW can take up to two years.
McBride added that the sooner the order comes in, the sooner they can ramp up production.
Currently, the plant is undergoing extensive work on modernising equipment and exploring the possibility of further expanding production lines.
They also almost doubled the number of employees — from 500 to 900 at two facilities.
