NYT: West Falling Short in Supplying Ukraine

By Staff, Agencies

Citing the leaked Pentagon documents, the New York Times reported that the US and its allies have not delivered the tanks, artillery ammunition and other supplies that Ukraine needed for the spring offensive against Russia’.

It further revealed that the US military planners estimated that Kiev would need 253 tanks for the coming assault, but only 200 had been mustered by late February. Of those, 140 were by April.

The West is struggling to fulfill its pledge to supply Ukraine with tanks, air defense systems, fighter jets and other weapons, the newspaper claimed. Three Ukrainian brigades preparing for the attack were short “at least a dozen tanks each” as of February 28.

Washington has reportedly hastened the delivery of the 31 promised M1 Abrams main battle tanks to Ukraine, but they will supposedly not be ready before sometime later this year. A dozen or so British Challenger 2 tanks have already arrived, while most of the German-made Leopard tanks are still being refurbished. 

Kiev’s supply of 155-millimeter artillery shells was down to 9,800 as of March 1, but the US delivered another 30,000 over the next 12 days. At this point, the Times noted, the Ukrainian appetite for artillery ammunition is “essentially limitless” while the EU and US industry will “take years to catch up with the demand.”

According to the outlet, the US has only “offered” to supply Ukraine with Ground Launched Small Diameter Bombs [GLSDB], which have a range of around 140km, noting that “they must first be built, and production of even a small batch could take months.”

Meanwhile, there have been reports of the GLSDB already being used – and intercepted by Russian air defenses.