Seoul further warned that Pyongyang is likely preparing to send additional troops and arms to back Russia's war in Ukraine, confirming earlier warnings by the Ukrainian intelligence.
The upcoming aid package is expected to include a substantial supply of air defense munitions, along with Stinger missiles and artillery rounds, according to U.S. officials.
Russia's artillery advantage against Ukraine has dropped to 1.5 rounds per Ukrainian shell, down from a previous ratio of five to one, officials told Sky News.
The European Union has delivered 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine, fulfilling the pledge it initially promised to deliver by the spring of 2024, the EU’s new top diplomat Kaja Kallas told the Kyiv Independent on the sidelines of her visit to Kyiv.
In comments to Interfax-Ukraine, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) also said Pyongyang had begun supplying Moscow with artillery systems last month.
South Korea did not provide artillery shells of its own production, nor did it make financial contributions to the purchase of shells from other countries under the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine from third countries.
Throughout 2024, the European Union has delivered 980,000 artillery shells to Ukraine out of the one million initially promised, the European Union's chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, announced on Nov. 11.
An ammunition shortage has long been a cause for concern in Ukraine but has escalated this year.
"We are recording an increased supply of defense aid packages. The situation with artillery has improved," President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram after a meeting of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief's Staff.
Seoul has not received such a request from the Ukrainian side, and the matter is not under consideration, a source in the Presidential Office told the South Korean news agency.
The fire broke out at 1:30 p.m. local time in a hydraulic press used for the three-dimensional molding of steel shell casings.
South Korea has hinted it could change its long-standing stance on not providing Ukraine directly with weapons in light of the dramatic escalation of North Korea's role in Russia's full-scale invasion. So far, Seoul has only provided humanitarian and non-lethal military aid to Kyiv, but on Oct. 22, a South
The "Ammunition for Ukraine" campaign has raised almost 4.5 million euros ($4.9 million) for the Czech artillery initiative after the Slovak government refused to participate.
According to the newspaper, around 3 million a year are being shipped from Pyongyang to Moscow, though a large number are believed to be faulty.
Ukraine has received more than one-third of the expected 500,000 rounds of 155-mm shells to be delivered under the Czech initiative by the end of the year, Ukraine's Ambassador to Czechia Vasyl Zvarych said in an interview with CTK news agency published on Oct. 3.
Capturing the major logistics hub of Pokrovsk is a key objective of Russia's ongoing offensive in Donetsk Oblast. The Kyiv Independent joined Ukrainian soldiers stationed in the sector as they are fending off constant Russian attacks.
Artillery ammunition manufactured in India is being diverted to Ukraine "despite protests from Moscow," Reuters reported on Sept. 19, citing customs data and nearly a dozen Indian and European government and defense industry officials.
Editor’s note: In accordance with the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, soldiers featured in this story are identified by first names and callsigns only. POKROVSK DISTRICT, Donetsk Oblast – Marked by wide plumes of gray smoke on the horizon, the open fields stretching out southeast of the city of
Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski confirmed that Warsaw has not yet participated in the project due to "temporary formal obstacles."
Ukraine has received the 18 promised Bohdana self-propelled howitzers financed by Denmark, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen announced.
Ukraine already produces its own 155 mm artillery ammunition, said Oleksandr Kamyshin, newly appointed advisor to the President of Ukraine on strategic issues.
As the allies gathered at the Ramstein Air Base for the 24th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG), President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in person to lobby for faster deliveries of air defenses and long-range weapons. Despite new aid pledges, the result has been rather lackluster. Kyiv has been
On the sidelines of the meeting, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced that Berlon would deliver an additional 12 self-propelled Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzers altogether worth 150 million euros ($165 million) to Kyiv.
The Scranton plant has upped its output of 155 mm shells from 24,000 rounds per month to 36,000, with the modernization elements likely to contribute to a further increase, factory officials said.
The Norwegian government will provide Kyiv with its defense technology and finance the production of 155-millimeter artillery shells developed by the Nammo (Nordic Ammunition Company) in Ukraine, according to its Aug. 23 statement.
Warsaw ordered 50,000 155-millimeter shells from the South African company Denel Munition, a subsidiary of the German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, in which it holds a 51% stake.
"This is another evidence of the allied trust in Czechia and our ammunition initiative. It is a unique opportunity to support Ukraine while using assets originally belonging to Russia and saving on public finances of European countries," Czech Defense Minister Jana Cernochova said.
This is the third IRIS-T SLS battery Germany has delivered to Ukraine. The SLS is a short-range variant with an operational range of 12 kilometers (7.5 miles).
There are sufficient finances to supply Ukraine with 500,000 shells by the end of the year, though this number could go up to 800,000 "if more financing is secured," Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said.
Olga Kovalyova, senior project manager for the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers (UAPP), was evacuated and hospitalized after receiving three shrapnel wounds, the UAPP said in a statement. She is in stable condition.
President Volodymyr Zelensky did not specify how many units Ukraine produces per month. But he described this figure as "powerful."
Ukraine's artillery capabilities have received a welcome boost with the news that 18 domestically-made Bohdana howitzers financed by Denmark have been handed over to the Ukrainian military. The purchase of the artillery units is part of a Danish-Ukrainian agreement that donates arms to Kyiv via direct purchases from the Ukrainian
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