Ukraine is experiencing a ‘huge shortage’ of ammunition – Financial Times reports

There is a “huge shortage” of ammunition in Ukraine, and increasing their domestic production is challenging due to a lack of key components and raw materials, especially gunpowder.

This information reported in the Financial Times.

“We have a massive deficit of ammunition not only in Ukraine but worldwide. We understand that we need to produce it here, in Ukraine because it’s depleted globally. All the storages are empty,” stated Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal to the publication.

According to him, Ukraine produced “dozens of drones” last year and already “tens of thousands” this year. Ukraine sometimes manages to modernize some outdated weapons. For instance, they successfully converted retired American AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles into ground-to-air missiles.

“These missiles were out of order. We fixed them. We found a way to launch them from the ground. It’s a kind of homemade air defense,” explained a Ukrainian official.

According to the same official, these repurposed munitions will help Ukraine “survive the winter” when Russia is expected to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

There have been many successful examples of this approach.

“We have a coordinated decision: we take something outdated and make something else,” said a source.

Currently, the priority is to establish joint ventures with European and American defense companies. Shmyhal reported that around 20 such agreements have been signed, but he did not provide details.

Certain “leading Ukrainian businessmen” argue that the government should prioritize domestic arms procurement more swiftly. The government acknowledges that slow progress in counteroffensives and an unstable political climate in the United States have made this shift necessary.