Ukraine’s Western backers will meet at NATO headquarters in Brussels for a second day on Wednesday as Russia appears to be starting a broader new offensive in east Ukraine.
“We see Russia introducing a number of new troops to the battlefield,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday.
Austin said Ukraine was looking to turn the tide on the battlefield to gain momentum, and that he expected Kyiv’s forces to launch their own counter-offensive in the spring.
After securing pledges on heavy tanks and longer-range missiles, President Zelensky has been pushing for Ukraine’s allies to send fighter jets.
On the Table at NATO Meeting, there is nothing like fighter jets for Ukraine.
Austin the U.S. Secretary of Defense mentioned artillery, anti-aircraft defenses and armor, but not combat aircraft.
Estonia’s defense minister Hanno Pevkur said: “It is not on the table today.”
Pevkur added: “At this moment, we are more concentrated on how we can increase the number of trained people.”
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, said “the issue of air defense and the issue of ammunition resupply are much more important at the moment than the discussion about combat aircraft.”
Ukraine and its allies are facing an ammunition problem as the fighting is consuming vast quantities of ammo, straining stockpiles and industries on both sides of the confrontation.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has warned that Kyiv’s current rate of expenditure was “many times higher” than the output in NATO countries.
Allies continue to raid their shelves for the rounds – especially 155mm shells – that Ukraine is firing by the thousands each day.
