The US will send artillery shells to Israel that were originally intended for Ukraine

The Pentagon is planning to transfer tens of thousands of 155mm artillery shells to Israel, which were originally intended for Ukraine.

This information comes from Axios, citing three Israeli officials.

According to sources in the report, representatives of the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) informed Washington that they urgently needed these shells to prepare for a ground operation in the Gaza sector and as a precaution for a potential escalation with the Shiite movement Hezbollah.

On October 19th, the Israeli defense department announced that the IDF would soon receive orders to commence an operation in the sector. The report mentions that the U.S. believed transferring these shells to Israel instead of Ukraine would not have a direct impact on Ukraine’s ability to counter Russian forces.

In early 2023, the United States began to remove stored ammunition from American depots in Israel for subsequent delivery to Ukraine. At that time, Israeli military did not need this weaponry. However, on October 7th, when Hamas attacked Israel, the situation changed. Since then, the IDF has significantly increased the use of artillery, even during clashes with Hezbollah on the Lebanon border.

On October 12th, CNN reported growing concerns at the U.S. Department of Defense regarding the potential shortage of ammunition to simultaneously support Israel and Ukraine. They noted that the “unexpected demand” for these munitions arose on the Israeli side when the U.S. and its allies’ reserves were depleted after over 18 months of support for Ukraine. The Pentagon had previously promised to increase the production of 155mm artillery shells by more than threefold, from the current 28,000 per month to 100,000 per month by 2025.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin assured that the country could and would support both countries. John Kirby, Coordinator for National Security Strategic Communications, supported this stance but emphasized that assistance to Ukraine would not be unlimited. Russia has criticized Western arms supplies to Ukraine, arguing that they prolong the conflict.