Originally Posted by
CLazarus
Not going to go back and look for sources. But I've seen multiple reports that suggest Russia may be laying the groundwork for another call up of conscripts in the near future. That would be very significant, and I have no idea how it will play out. But it would underline the point that Russia is increasingly desperate and running out of money to incentivize suckers.
Oh, and Ukraine has taken advantage of the Starlink cutoff to reclaim a significant amount of territory. Not anything game changing really, but I'm sure they will extract a fearful price for it yet again when the Russians go back on the offensive. Some of the kill ratios I've seen reported lately are HIGHLY favorable to Ukraine, even if they were exaggerated by a factor of greater than 2.
Kill ratios rely on resupply unfortunately. German production of 155mm rounds produced inside Ukraine are reportedly beginning to reach artillery units badly in need of reliable delivery.
Kyiv independent…
Kyiv had begun producing 155 mm shells — a NATO standard size for howitzers, as opposed to the Soviet 152 mm. But the problem is simple, says Roman “Cat” Kotliarov, an artillerist in the Ukrainian military who recently relocated from Donbas to man a 122 mm mortar in northern Kharkiv Oblast, near the Russian border. “Those shells are no good,” referring to Ukrainian-made mortar shells.
“If you're talking about Ukrainian mortar shells, which are produced in Ukraine, they’re very low quality. I don't like to work with them,” Kotliarov told the Kyiv Independent.
Another soldier, a captain by the call sign of “Artem” who recently rebased after two and a half years in frontline artillery to a desk job in Kyiv, is similarly critical of Ukraine’s local production of the mortars themselves.
“The only Ukrainian-made mortar I used was made in Sumy. In 1942,” he told the Kyiv Independent. “It weighed maybe 800 kilograms.” Contrary to government announcements, the situation, he says, has not improved.
The struggle with shells is just one striking case study in the broader reality of Ukrainian manufacturing of traditional weapons.
As for armored vehicles and tanks, local production is too often just refurbishment of Soviet-era equipment. And indeed Ukrainian local war vehicle makers like Ukrainian Armor have converted their factories to produce shells.
A representative for the Strategic Industries Ministry declined to comment, other than to describe the shell industry as “sensitive.” Kotliarov was more forthcoming.
“Without (U.S.) assistance, we cannot survive,” said Kotliarov.