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Ukraine Running Out of Ammunition
The Russian airforce could be bombing at will as early as mid-May
The expectation a year ago was that Russia’s dominance of the skies over Ukraine would destroy any Ukrainian resistance that might arise. When Russia’s fighter jets, bombers, and helicopters started dropping like flies, the world was pleasantly surprised, and Ukraine began to entertain notions that victory was possible.
Since then, there has been an unprecedented amount of munitions expended on both sides causing logistical problems for both armies.
For more than a year, Ukrainian air defenses, reinforced by Western weaponry, have kept Russian planes at bay.
But without a huge influx of munitions, Ukraine’s entire air defense network, weakened by repeated barrages from Russian drones and missiles, could fracture, according to U.S. officials and newly leaked Pentagon documents, potentially allowing President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to unleash his lethal fighter jets in ways that could change the course of the war (Ukraine Air Defense Is In Peril).
Both Russia and NATO are facing severely depleted munitions stocks and as Ukraine plans for its long-awaited offensive, which will likely see the use of a small amount of NATO battle tanks, its need for even larger amounts of…