Ukrainian defense official's urgent plea: 'We desperately need artillery support'
"We desperately need this assistance," insists Budanov. As it stands, Ukraine is grappling with a severe lack of artillery ammunition and firing systems. Budanov underlines the urgency of a quick increase in the arsenal, regardless of the age or type of the weapons.
Feb 1, 2024 | updated: 4:32 AM EST, March 7, 2024
At the moment, the front line is being crippled by a lack of equipment for the defenders to bombard Russian positions. This equipment shortage stems from months of combat, during which the Russian Federation army has demolished many of Ukraine's long-range guns.
"It's a matter of quantity rather than quality," the military officer remarks. Presently, Ukraine is struggling not just with a scarcity of artillery ammunition, but even a dearth of artillery itself. It is also important to highlight reports from Bloomberg, citing anonymous sources, that suggest the Ukrainians are having increasing difficulties in repelling Russian forces. These defensive challenges are directly attributable to a shortage of ammunition and long-range weapons.
It is also worth noting that artillery issues aren't exclusive to Ukraine. The Russians too, have conceded to an unsatisfactory level of artillery production and a need to improve the range of some rockets. Moscow is also grappling with the production of Kalibr missiles, which, boasting a range of up to 932 miles, are critical assets in their army. According to Ukrainian intelligence, Russia's current rate of Kalibr production is around 25 per month.
It is pertinent to recount that experimental rockets from the USA were expected to reach Ukraine. The GLSDB (Ground Launched Small Diameter Bomb) missiles, with a reach of up to 93 miles, can help alleviate the shortage in the Ukrainian army. A key advantage of these missiles is their low production cost, made possible due to the availability of readily accessible components. This missile combines the GBU-39 SDB bomb with the GMLRS missile system from the HIMARS launcher.
Up to this point, artillery missile support for Ukraine has consisted of roughly 250,000 pieces of ammunition provided in the middle of the previous year. As clarified by journalist Przemysław Juraszek of Wirtualna Polska, this batch consisted of European war reserves, such as standard 6-inch artillery shells, upgraded variants featuring a gas generator (increasing the range of the artillery), and specialized guided shells. The latter includes the Volcano 155 GLR shells, which can hit targets up to 50 miles away.
