WASHINGTON, September 15 William, Undersecretary of Defense for Defense Acquisition Laplante confirmed plans to increase production of 155-mm artillery shells used in Ukraine to 100 thousand per month in 2025.
He said that now the monthly output is 28 thousand — twice as much as it was “six to eight months ago.”
““In 2025 we will be at 100 thousand a month,” Laplante said.
The Pentagon said in August that it had sent more than 2 million of these shells for Western-style guns to Ukraine. Due to a shortage of unitary ammunition, the Americans switched to supplying cluster shells, calling this a temporary measure while production was increased.
Russia previously sent a note to NATO countries over arms supplies to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that NATO countries are “playing with fire” by supplying weapons to Ukraine. Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov noted that pumping Ukraine up with weapons from the West does not contribute to the success of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect. Lavrov stated that the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, “including not only the supply of weapons, but also the training of personnel… in the territory of Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and other countries.”