NYT: The West has enough shells for only one large-scale counter-offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The Ukrainian military fires thousands of artillery shells a day in an attempt to hold Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, jeopardizing a counteroffensive planned for spring. This is stated in the article The New York Times, dedicated to the shortage of shells in the Armed Forces.

Ukraine's allies are actively working to increase the Ukrainian arsenal: the United States is trying to increase production, the EU countries have created a fund in order to buy or produce shells, Britain has organized a special group that is looking for shipments of old Soviet shells around the world. However, all this is not enough for the volumes that Ukraine shoots every day.

The most needed weapon now — guns and howitzers, as well as shells for them. The publication recalls the words of one of the Ukrainian military, who complained that his fighters managed to knock out the latest Russian tank, but they failed to “finish off” him, because the commander did not allow him to be shot from artillery: they say, this is too expensive for Ukraine.

Therefore, the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is now actually faced with a choice: either save artillery fire in Bakhmut, exposing soldiers to greater danger, or reduce their chances of success during the spring counteroffensive operation.

A high-ranking Pentagon official called the impending counteroffensive & #171;the last attempt», since the allies of Ukraine do not have enough ammunition to keep up with Ukraine, and their stocks are critically small. Western producers are ramping up production, but it will take many months for new supplies to start meeting demand.