Ukraine is relying on unused artillery shells left behind by Russian troops as it faces an ammunition shortage and Western aid remains in limbo.
Soldiers like Max Polyukhovich are scouring Ukraine’s eastern front, searching for unexploded mines and artillery shells that would be reused to meet Ukraine’s munitions needs, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Polyukhovich – known to other troops as “Mad Max” – told the newspaper that he estimates he supplied the brigades with at least 14,000 shells and 4,000 rounds of aerial drone ammunition.
As the war in Ukraine rages, war officials and analysts have warned that Ukraine is facing an ammunition shortage, while Russian manufacturers are producing up to seven times more ammunition than Russian manufacturers. Western weapons. The Journal reported that Ukrainian commanders estimate that Russia fired about five times as many shells as Ukraine.
“When Russian troops advance and their weapons fire, Ukraine does not have enough ammunition to fight back,” US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said at a White House press briefing. in March. “It costs land. It costs lives. And it costs us, the United States and the NATO alliance, strategically.”
As Republicans block U.S. funding for Ukraine, Ukrainian forces on the battlefield hope to rely on service members like Polyukhovich to find more unexploded artillery shells or land mines that can be reused for artillery, the Journal reported.
Polyukhovich told the Journal he would search swamps in areas where Russian troops had retreated or search every house in villages.
With unexploded anti-tank mines, Polyukhoich extracts the powder inside the explosive and turns it into a bomb that will be dropped by a drone, according to the Journal.
Officers from the 92nd Assault Brigade told the newspaper that Polyukhovich alone supplied their unit with more than 8,000 shells.
Other brigades are also sending mine-sweepers to Polyukhovich so they can be trained and learn how to find more ammunition, according to the Journal.
But even with Polyukhovich, Ukrainian troops are in constant need of more ammunition, The Journal reports.
“If I send 100 rounds, they call the next day asking for more ammunition,” Polyukhovich told the newspaper.
A spokesperson for Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
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