Ukraine itself has purchased over 350,000 artillery shells from the defense industry of Europe.
This was announced by the Vice President of the EU, Josep Borrell, who stated that in addition to ammunition provided and purchased by EU member states, Ukraine has acquired shells under its own contracts.
Currently, European countries are supporting Ukraine by transferring ammunition from their reserves and increasing production at defense enterprises.
"Ukraine today needs 200,000 155 [mm] ammunition per month. It makes 2.5 million per year," said Josep Borrell.
Borrell noted that having a lot of money is one thing, but it won't turn into ammunition if the industry cannot produce the required quantity of ammunition.
"You need to convert financial capabilities into industrial capabilities to ensure the supply of ammunition," Borrell says.
The European Union's goal by the end of the year is to supply a total of 1,100,000 rounds as donations.
"This will not be enough, but it is much more than we could have expected," Borrell noted.
However, there have also been some initiatives to explore other sources of supply that could accelerate the replenishment of Ukraine's stocks.
"There is another source of supply that should be taken into account - direct contracts between Ukraine and European industry," says the Vice President of the EU.
Through this channel of direct procurement from European industry, over 350,000 rounds have been supplied to Ukraine.
