Germany running out of explosive artillery shells, having provided it in bulk to Kyiv: Report

Germany has run down its stocks of explosive artillery shells, having provided Ukraine with the stocks for its defence ever since the war began. The European nation has only 20,000 artillery shells left, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

According to confidential defence ministry papers accessed by the magazine Der Spiegel, the budget committee is currently being convinced of the need for urgent purchases.

The ministry is expected to lay outnine contracts for the accelerated purchase of artillery and tank ammunition in the coming months to the budget committee, Der Spiegel wrote.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, Germany rushed supplies of 155-millimetre artillery rounds used by howitzersto Kyiv - leading to the dip in numbers.

The German military needs to build up an inventory of 230,000 shells by 2031 to comply with NATO goals. According to the security bloc, this is the minimum amount required to withstand 30 days of intensive combat.

It was earlier this year that the European Union agreed to deliver one million 155-millimetre shells to Ukraine over the next 12 months. However, experts are of the view that such an amount could easily be used up within five months, perhaps even in three, putting additional pressure on the EU, especially Germany.

Cascading effects of the weapondepletion

The depletion of arms in Germany could have cascading effects. Ukraine, which is currently dependent on Western nations, including Germany for weapons, would be caught in a frightening situation.

A recent NYT report stated Kyiv is hard-pressed for weapons whilst simultaneously being clueless about the millions it has spent to access those arms.

"Ukrainian government documents show that as of the end of last year, Kyiv had paid arms suppliers more than $800 million since the Russian invasion in February 2022 for contracts that went completely or partly unfulfilled," the publication noted.

Notably, at any instance, over 30 per cent of Kyiv's arsenal is under repair. In its battle with Russia, such a high rate of weapon failure is non-negotiable and can potentially be the difference in eventual win or defeat.

Germany not pushing on under Scholz

Last year, Chancellor Olaf Scholz gave the "Zeitenwende" (turning of the times) speech in the German parliament in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. During the speech, he announced that the German military would receive a fund of 100 billion euros to be upgraded.

However, a year into the speech, it looks like Scholz might be struggling massively. The country has entered a recession and its weapons arsenal is plummeting by the second.

(With inputs from agencies)

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