What Ukraine needs most — ammo

For a second, Ukraine had caught the break it wanted and deserved.

Mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s forces have been advancing on Moscow; Russia was dealing with a civil warfare that may have crippled its warfare of aggression in Ukraine. We don’t but know what the fallout from the latest short-lived revolt might be: Mutiny isn’t good for the morale, cohesion or effectiveness of the troops within the trenches. But when a disaster that ended as startlingly because it started doesn’t devastate Russian defenses, Kyiv and Washington might quickly discover themselves returning to the grim math of the warfare in Ukraine.

For months, debate in Western capitals has targeted on whether or not to present Ukraine extra refined weapons — high-end tactical missile methods referred to as ATACMS, Storm Shadow cruise missiles, F-16 fighter jets and extra. These weapons will surely assist, however success on this warfare nonetheless hinges on abundance of two much less horny however extra essential armaments: artillery ammunition and air-defense methods. If Ukraine can’t win this warfare shortly, via a Russian collapse or a heroic breakthrough on the battlefield, it may nonetheless be at risk of shedding if it might probably’t replenish these arsenals.