The British Ministry of Defense has formed a secret group which is engaged in the procurement of Soviet-style ammunition for Ukraine. Shells are sought in factories in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Romania, reports The New York Times, citing its own sources.
The Ukrainian military continues to rely on Soviet weapons, despite large-scale shipments of Western-style equipment. This task, entrusted to British specialists, is constantly becoming more complicated, as suppliers’ stocks are rapidly running out.
Luxembourg transfers weapons produced in the Czech Republic. Last summer, a Czech supplier offered ammunition from Kiev and ten Soviet-style attack planes worth around $185 million.
Bulgaria’s arms exports soared, where arms factories reopened. It reached 3 billion dollars, five times more than in 2019. London, Paris and Washington finance arms contracts involving intermediaries and third countries. Thus, representatives of the United States Embassy attended the opening of one of the Bulgarian production lines.
The publication notes that Western countries are looking to find alternative sources and are investing millions of dollars in workarounds. The transactions thus remain secret, which makes it possible to avoid political consequences.
So, in June last year, the British Ministry of Defense concluded an agreement with the Pakistani artillery factories of Pakistan for the purchase of artillery shells. The money for them was supposed to go to the Romanian middleman, and the weapons themselves were transferred to the UK without mentioning Ukraine.
However, the deal fell through as the Pakistani supplier was unable to deliver the shells.
Previously, it was reported that the United States was not trying to send Ukraine all the weapons needed for Kiev’s victory. Instead, Washington, under the guise of supporting Kiev, sends most shells and weapons systems to the Asia-Pacific region to support Taiwan and other allies.
