Schedules of weapons supply to Ukraine will not be met, Rakhmanin says
In addition to other weapons, the delivery of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine is delayed (Photo:REUTERS/Fabian Bimmer)
The scheduled delivery dates for weapon supplies from partner countries to Ukraine will not be met, claimed MP Serhiy Rakhmanin, a member of the parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence, in a comment to Radio NV on April 14.
"There are both subjective and objective difficulties,” the MP explained.
“The objective ones are that the munitions and weapons need to be transported to Ukraine with maximum security. Unfortunately, subjective ones are not new, nor am the only one to have talked about it. Our partners overestimated their abilities a bit, taking on the relevant obligations.”
In addition, the technical conditions of some of the delivered weapons are not appropriate for battlefield use – in particular, the German-made Leopard 2 tanks, Rakhmanin noted.
"They need restoration, they need repairs, which sometimes is routine maintenance, but sometimes, unfortunately, means major repairs,” he said.
“That's why, actually, tanks are not being supplied as quickly as they were supposed to be.”
Rakhmanin also mentioned issues with both Soviet-era and modern 155 mm munitions, as their stocks have been depleted worldwide. However, the Ukrainian army extensively needs them for its artillery systems.
"In fact, the efforts of our partners and the efforts of Ukrainian officials are aimed at making these supplies as intensive and rhythmic as possible,” he said.
"The situation is getting better in some respects. I think we can talk about it, because it is already being said out loud, including Ukrainian officials and the Western press. The Washington Post mentioned today, for example, that the dates for the delivery of weapons that were planned earlier will unfortunately not be met.”
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on March 25 that Ukraine has been unable to being the launch of a counter-offensive, due to the lack of weapons and ammunition.
The Washington Post named weather, slow equipment deliveries, and the leak of Pentagon documents as among the reasons for the delay in the start of Ukraine's counter-offensive.
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