Ukraine ammunition shortage creates concern in Europe

▶ Jens Stoltenberg urges Washington to pass $95bn package as Ukrainian troops forced to ration shells

Ukrainian soldiers are being forced to ration ammunition because a hold-up in the US approving a military aid package is affecting how it conducts its war with Russia, western officials have said.

While Ukraine has claimed success this week in sinking a Russian warship off the coast of Crimea, its troops are running low on certain types of ammunition and air defence equipment, piling pressure on Kyiv’s western allies to bolster defence production.

“We really need to step up our game,” said Dutch Defence Minister Kajsa Ollongren at a meeting of Nato defence ministers in Brussels yesterday.

“We are very much committed to giving the ammunition that Ukraine needs and providing them with that but we are struggling on the side of our production capacity,” she said.

Concern has been mounting in EU capitals over Europe’s inability to keep up with Ukrainian needs.

The EU’s foreign policy and security chief Josep Borrell has suggested that countries start to sell weapons primarily to Ukraine.

One western official said battlefield commanders in Ukraine were “quite concerned” by the shortage.

“We know that some of those units are marshalling their ammunition quite closely, they’re deciding how many munitions they’re going to fire on any given day,” the official said.

Russia has understood this concern and increased strikes on Ukraine’s defence industrial base, the source added.

“It’s important that support coming from Nato allies and from others to Ukraine [should] continue,” the official said.

This comes as a US aid package has become bogged down by local politics. The US Senate on Tuesday approved a $95 billion package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but House Speaker Mike Johnson refused to put it to a vote in the lower chamber.

The delay has had a considerable effect, Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.

“I expect the US to be able to make a decision, that Congress and the House of Representatives will agree continued support to Ukraine,” he said.

A delay in the US approving a military aid package for Ukraine has had an “impact” on how it conducts its war with Russia, Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said.

“We see the impact already of the fact that the US has not been able to make a decision, but I expect the US to be able to make a decision, that the Congress and the House of Representatives will agree continued support to Ukraine,” Mr Stoltenberg said on Thursday, before a meeting of Nato defence ministers in Brussels.

Ukrainian commanders and western officials have said Kyiv’s troops are being outgunned by Russia along the front line and are having to use artillery and air defence munitions sparingly.

“If we allow [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin to win, it will not only be bad for the Ukrainians, a tragedy for Ukrainians, but also be dangerous for us. It will make the world even more dangerous and us more vulnerable,” Mr Stoltenberg said.

Mr Stoltenberg, who visited the US three weeks ago, said he had spoken to Democratic and Republican congressmen and there was “broad agreement for sustained support”.

The US Senate approved a $95 billion package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan by a comfortable margin on Tuesday, but House Speaker Mike Johnson, an ally of former president Donald Trump, has refused to put it to a vote in the lower chamber.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said he would lobby US politicians on the issue at the Munich Security Conference. “We have to emphasise our willingness to support Ukraine. This is an issue for all of us,” he said.

British Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said it was “simply unconscionable” to think Ukraine might lose the war.

“We need to make sure that civilised nations are prepared to stand right behind Ukraine,” he said.

Mr Shapps also announced that Britain, in partnership with Latvia, would send thousands more drones to Ukraine, in the first phase of a £200 million ($251 million) drone package announced by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last month.

Speaking at a campaign rally in South Carolina last weekend, Mr Trump suggested that if he returns to the White House, he would not defend Nato members that fail to meet defence spending targets.

Nato has said it expects 18 of its 31 members to reach a collective target of spending 2 per cent of their GDP on defence.

“But we still have a way to go,” said Mr Stoltenberg, who has repeatedly said that “2 per cent is a minimum”.

“One for all, all for one applies for all allies and it’s the heart of Nato,” he said, addressing Mr Trump’s remarks. “We should not pursue any path that indicates that we try to divide

Europe from North America.” French Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu said France would join Germany and other European countries in meeting the spending target this year.

Worries over US support have been compounded by Hungary’s refusal to approve Sweden’s accession to Nato, after Turkey gave its approval in January following a 20-month delay.

“Sweden must join Nato now,” Mr Pistorius said. “Any further delay is straining everyone’s patience.”

Western officials have said that, by blocking Sweden’s membership, Hungary has broken a promise Defence Minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky made to his Nato counterparts that his country would not be the last to give approval.

Hungary has not clarified its objections to Sweden’s membership. The only criteria for a country to join Nato is that it enriches the alliance’s security.

German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said he would lobby US politicians at the Munich Security Conference