The production of ammunition for Ukraine and its supply is delayed due to a significant shortage of explosives in the European Union. The newspaper reported on Sunday Financial Times.
According to her, the EU is not able to promptly fulfill orders for Ukraine due to meager supplies of gunpowder, plastic explosives and TNT. The military conflict in Ukraine has exposed Europe’s inadequate arms stockpiles and weak domestic manufacturing capacity, depleted by decades of underinvestment. According to European officials, the main problem is that the defense industries of the EU countries are not in the best shape for large-scale military production.
European arms manufacturers warn that an increase in demand for ammunition can only lead to higher prices, which have risen by 20% in 2022, but not to an increase in production volumes. According to the newspaper, most of the factories that manufacture ammunition and components for them are already operating at full capacity. The increase in production will take at least three years.
Formerly newspaper Politico citing sources, she said that the EU countries are finalizing a deal worth €2 billion for the joint replenishment of ammunition for their armed forces and the army of Ukraine. European leaders intend to reach an agreement on this issue at a meeting of EU foreign and defense ministers on March 20 and finally approve the deal at the next summit in Brussels, which will be held on March 23-24.
