Up to 1.5 million shells available to Ukraine through the Czech program — report

"We can do much more than the initially announced number," Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said.

While Lipavsky declined to provide a specific timeline for the delivery, he said that Ukraine might receive a total of 1.5 million shells.

The minister pointed out that Prague’s efforts alone are not sufficient to fill Kyiv’s ammunition needs and that funding for the initial deliveries should be in place before they are sent.

Lipavsky also implied that the initiative is already positively affecting Ukraine's military operations, even though shipments have not yet begun.

"As we see, it already helps Ukraine to fight better, because they know that they will have a supply of fresh ammunition, which changed their perspective on usage of the current stockpiles," he said.

When Czech President Peter Pavel said in February that Prague has found a way to purchase artily rounds for Ukraine from non-EU countries, he spoke of 800,000 shells that could be delivered in a short timeframe.

The Wall Street Journal wrote on March 18 that Czechia is sourcing ammunition for Ukraine globally, including from Russia's allies.