A leading NATO official and Canada's top military commander have both warned allies within the past week that their ammunition shortages have reached a crisis state, and are calling for urgent action to boost production of critical artillery rounds.Gen. Wayne Eyre, chief of the defence staff, recently told a House of Commons committee that if Canadian troops were called upon to fire their big guns at the same rate as Ukrainian troops fighting to repel the Russian invasion, their supply of shells would last for only a few days.At the Warsaw Security Forum this week, Admiral Rob Bauer, the head of NATO's military council, warned that "the bottom of the barrel is now visible" in terms of how much ammunition the alliance has available to transfer to Ukraine.
That was published October 6, the day before the current war in Gaza.
There have been conflicting reports about whether some of the artillery shells meant for Ukraine were diverted to Israel, but either way, it looks like the rate that both Ukraine and Israel are using the shells is making what was already considered a major worldwide shortage even worse.
The US is ramping up its production of 155mm shells, but it will take many months to get them to production.
Last summer, Israel signed a contract with Elbit - which had been the IDF's exclusive manufacturer of artillery shells - a $60 million contract for tens of thousands of M107-A3 artillery shells, anticipating them for use in a potential Lebanon war. They are not supposed to be delivered until some time in 2024.
This is a very concerning issue, especially if a second front opens in Lebanon.
|
Or order from your favorite bookseller, using ISBN 9798985708424. Read all about it here! |
|
