Hundreds of Czechs and a handful of Ukrainians are working round the clock in eastern Czech Republic to transform a collection of buildings dating back to World War Two into a hub for supplying arms and ammunition to Ukraine.

The initiative is part of Europe’s efforts to provide Kyiv with weapons to repel Russian forces after the stalling of U.S. military aid, which has been the backbone of international support.

Visiting the Sternberk facility owned by Czech private arms manufacturer Excalibur Army, General Onno Eichelsheim, head of the Dutch military, described the urgency of the situation as Kyiv’s losses mount in eastern and southern Ukraine.

“We have to speed it up. We have to deliver more and we have to do it faster,” he told Reuters during the recent trip to inspect self-propelled howitzer cannons and a refurbished Russian tank to be sent into battle.

The most pressing need for Ukraine two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion is artillery ammunition, which is running low as the sides use heavy cannon fire to hold largely static, entrenched positions along the 1,000-km (620-mile) front line.

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The European Union, which with other Western allies wants to contain Russian advances and repel an increasingly assertive rival, launched an initiative in March 2023 to deliver 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine within 12 months.

A year later, it had delivered little more than half that number, officials said, because of insufficient production capacity and a lack of long-term orders.

Continue here: Reuters