Sergei Bobok | AFP | Getty Images WASHINGTON – The Ukrainian negotiator who is leading talks with Russian officials who have now stopped has called on US and NATO allies to quickly supply Kyiv with additional weapons, citing a lack of progress in mediating a peace mediation. “Once or twice a week we call each other and they kind of check and ask what’s going on, but both sides are clearly aware that there is no room for negotiation at the moment,” said David Arahamia, the leader of the majority in parliament. Ukraine and Kiev. top negotiator. Arakhamia, who met with reporters at the German Marshall Fund in Washington to share briefings from his discussions with Biden government officials and lawmakers, including Parliament Speaker Nancy Pelosi, said Ukraine just needed more weapons and more weapons. against Russia. “They took a step back and rebuilt and now they are fighting in a very different way. It is a much smarter way I would say because logistics are in place now,” Arakhamia said. In the weeks following the Kremlin invasion of Ukraine in late February, Russian forces on the ground faced a number of logistical problems on the battlefield, including reports of fuel and food shortages. Arakhamia added that Ukraine’s fight against Russia has turned into a “distance battle” and will therefore require a consistent supply of long-range artillery, drones, interceptors and radar to deal with Russia’s colossal artillery with heavy artillery. and long-range missiles. “There is no area in Ukraine that is considered completely safe because it has missiles at a distance that allow them to shoot at any target throughout Ukraine,” Arahamia added. On Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced another $ 1 billion in weapons for Ukraine, including anti-ship systems, artillery rockets and projectile shells. Since the Kremlin invaded its former Soviet neighbor on February 24, the United States has provided $ 5.6 billion in security assistance to Ukraine. The latest security package, the 12th such tranche, comes as Russian forces intensify their attacks in the Donbas region of Ukraine. Heavy artillery platforms are high on the Ukrainian army’s wish lists. To date, the Pentagon has deployed 126 155-mm artillery systems. from reserves of the US Army and Marine Corps to Ukrainian forces. Along with the artillery, the United States has also sent about 260,000 artillery shells. The Pentagon also recently took over the High Mobility Artillery Missile Systems, or HMARS, built by defense giant Lockheed Martin. HMARS are designed to launch a variety of missiles from a 5-tonne mobile truck. Members of Ukraine fire a missile from a M777 Howitzer near a front line as Russia continues its offensive in Ukraine in the Donetsk region of Ukraine on June 6, 2022. Stringer | Reuters Arahamia said Ukrainian forces were rapidly running out of ammunition and artillery shells for the heavy artillery platforms provided by the United States. “A delivery of 150,000 shells, which is considered a very large mission, is just a month of war,” he said, adding that “when the fighting is intense, we could use up to half a million shells a month.” Arahamia said that after large missions of ammunition and artillery fire, some NATO allies were not ready to supply and send to Ukraine. “They want to protect their countries, which is understandable to us,” he said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s threats to extend the war in Ukraine to Europe. “People were not ready for a fight of this magnitude,” Arahamia added.
