WASHINGTON (AP) – Eight weeks after the war, the Biden administration’s decision to drastically increase artillery supplies to Ukraine signals a deepening US commitment at a key stage in the struggle for the country’s industrial center.
He also exacerbated Moscow’s warning that continued US military aid to Ukraine would have “unpredictable” consequences, suggesting that Russia sees the international wave of weapons as a growing obstacle to its invasion and as a Western provocation.
“We are currently in a critical window of time,” President Joe Biden said Thursday, announcing he had approved an additional $ 800 million to help the battlefield, which includes 72 of the U.S. military’s 155-millimeter howitzers, along with 144,000 artillery shots and more than 120 armed drones, which will require training for Ukrainian operators.
That led to $ 3.4 billion in security aid since the invasion of Russia on February 24. This is exceptional general US military assistance to a country to which the United States has no obligations under a defense treaty.
A look at US assistance and US expectations of what it will achieve:
WHY IS ARTILLERY SO IMPORTANT NOW?
Heavy weapons such as artillery are emerging as a key feature of the unfolding battle for Ukraine’s eastern region, known as Donbass. The relatively flat terrain is suitable for what the military calls shunting warfare – the movement of tanks and other ground forces backed by long-range guns such as the 155-millimeter howitzer.
The Russians have deployed their additional artillery in the Donbass region in recent days, along with more ground forces and other materials to support and sustain what could be a long battle for ground in Ukraine’s industrial center.
The howitzers the United States is sending to Ukraine will be the latest American model, known as the M777, used by the military and marines. Smaller and more maneuverable than the older model, the M777 can be deployed on the battlefield by heavy helicopters and move relatively quickly between the positions of seven-ton trucks, which are also provided by the Pentagon.
“What makes it important is the kind of battles we expect in Donbass. Because of the terrain, because it’s open, because it’s flat, because it’s not so urban, we can expect the Russians to rely on long-range shooting – especially artillery, “said John Kirby, Pentagon spokesman.” So we know this will be part of the book of the Russians.
A senior U.S. defense official said the first of the 72 howitzers is expected to begin moving to Europe by this weekend. Of the 18 other 155mm howitzers Biden approved last week for deployment to Ukraine, an unspecified number are already in Europe, and training on American howitzers for Ukrainian personnel began on Wednesday in an undiscovered country outside Ukraine.
WILL THIS BE ENOUGH TO KEEP THE RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE?
Probably not Biden said he had already asked the Pentagon to provide additional potential military assistance.
Biden said that this phase of the Russian invasion would be “more limited in terms of geography, but not in terms of brutality.” He also acknowledged the need for Congress to approve the funds needed to continue providing key weapons to Ukraine beyond the latest $ 800 million package, which he said will ensure a steady flow of weapons in the next few weeks alone.
U.S. officials say the Russians are trying to adjust their approach to Ukraine after early failures, suggesting the battle could be a long one.
After failing to capture Kyiv, the capital, in the first weeks of its multilateral invasion, Russia has since narrowed its targets, focusing on Donbass, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting since 2014, and on a stretch of coastal territory along of the Sea of Azov from Mariupol to the Crimean peninsula. One Russian advantage is the proximity of this region to Russian territory, which allows for shorter supply lines compared to previous battles in northern Ukraine.
WHAT ELSE DOES THE US PROVIDE?
In addition to the 72 howitzers and vehicles needed to move across the battlefield, the new weapons package for Ukraine includes artillery shells and armed drones from US Air Force reserves. A wide range of items, including radars used to target Russian artillery, as well as air surveillance radars and unmanned coastal drones, are still being prepared from a separate $ 800 million weapons package announced just last week.
“Artillery and drones are exactly what Ukraine will need as Russia moves into its next East-South campaign,” said Mark Montgomery, a retired Navy Rear Admiral who previously served in the U.S. European Command. improving US-Ukrainian military relations. Montgomery is now an analyst at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.
The drone included in the latest package is called Phoenix Ghost, manufactured by the American company Aevex Aerospace, which claims to be a leader in “full-spectrum air intelligence solutions.” Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, declined to describe the drone’s capabilities, except that it was “used to a large extent, but not exclusively, to attack targets.” There are also on-board cameras.
Kirby said the drones are especially suitable for the terrain where Ukrainians are fighting in Donbass.
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