The Czech initiative to supply Ukraine with artillery ammunition aims to secure supplies worth 5 billion euros from the world market, but only 1.4 billion euros have been raised so far, a senior NATO military official said, quoted by "Reuters".
The program, in which donors such as Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands participate, along with Czech defense institutions and arms companies, aims to procure large-caliber ammunition to reduce Ukraine's battlefield deficit with Russia.
In December, the NATO mission to Ukraine (NSATU) estimated that the initiative would provide 1.8 million artillery shells in 2025, which accounts for about 43% of all ammunition supplies to Kiev and approximately 70% of Soviet-caliber shells.
According to the same source, ammunition worth about 16 billion euros is currently available on the world market. NATO plans to direct spending of 5 billion euros mainly to purchase hundreds of thousands of artillery shells under the Czech scheme.
Last year, donors provided about $4.8 billion to finance deliveries under the program, former Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said in December. The Czech contribution has reached 3 billion crowns (about $145 million).
The initiative is seen as a key element of the allies' efforts to ensure a sustainable supply of artillery ammunition to Ukraine in the context of the ongoing conflict.