Kyiv lacks ammunition.
But Pistorius sees bottlenecks in the Bundeswehr – and in Bakhmut Prigozhin claims land gains.
News ticker on the Ukraine war.
Ammunition
for
Kiev
: Boris Pistorius emphasizes bottlenecks in the Ukraine war
boss
Wagner
Group
announces success in
Donbass
: Vladimir Putin's "chef" Prigozhin sends audio file
Battle
for
Bakhmut
: Volodymyr Zelenskyj warns of a "clear path" for Russia
Kiev – The Ukrainian government is demanding significantly more ammunition from the EU than previously promised.
Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said on Wednesday (8 March) ahead of consultations with EU defense ministers in Stockholm that his country urgently needs "a million rounds of ammunition" to defend itself against Russia.
That is four times as much as has been discussed so far by the EU side.
The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell proposes that the member states deliver ammunition worth initially one billion euros to Ukraine from their own stocks.
"That's not enough," stressed Reznikov.
Ukraine is supported by Estonia.
"I hope that today we will find a political consensus that we will deliver a million rounds as soon as possible," said Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur.
Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius called Borrell's proposal "important and necessary".
"But that should not hide the fact that we will have to overcome the bottlenecks in the coming weeks and months," said the SPD politician.
Germany can only deliver within the framework of its "own defense capability," he emphasized.
NATO enlargement: The growing defense alliance
NATO enlargement: The growing defense alliance
Bachmut currently: Wagner reports successes in a contested city
The Russian mercenary group Wagner meanwhile claims to have taken the “eastern part” of Bakhmut.
This was announced by her boss Yevgeny Prigozhin in an audio message.
The battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut is the longest-running of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
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Picture taken on March 5: Ukrainian fighters in the Bakhmut region are warming themselves by a flame.
© Aris Messinis/AFP
Bachmut currently: Volodymyr Zelenskyj warns of a "clear course" for Russia
The Wagner group founded by Prigozhin plays a central role in the battle for Bakhmut.
The pressure on the Ukrainian troops has recently increased significantly in the industrial city.
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously warned that if the Russian army captured Bakhmut, it would have "free rein" for further conquests in eastern Ukraine.
(AFP/dpa/frs)
List of rubrics: © Aris Messinis/AFP