The European Union is giving Ukraine 1 million artillery rounds for €2 billion. The United Kingdom has offered to send depleted uranium anti-tank ammunition along with the main battle tanks.
After months of discussions through the European Defense Agency, the European Union (EU) and Norway (Norway) bought and sent a million 155mm artillery rounds to Ukraine.
The EU has said that it will pay European Union member states €2 billion ($2.15 billion) in two payments for getting rid of their stockpiles of shells. The first payment will be made in the next two months. The second step is to give money to European arms makers so they can start making exportable ammunition again.
The European Union (EU) would want to do rid of this stockpile within a year, but it’s not certain if the European arms industry can make enough weapons fast enough to reach this aim. France has insisted on a “buy European” plan to protect European businesses, even if more shells could have been obtained from outside the EU.
Josep Borrell, the foreign minister of the European Union, termed the accord “historic” and said it showed that the EU was united with Ukraine.
In addition to sending a lot of armaments, the EU will also provide Ukraine €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) in “macro-financial assistance.” In the same way, as Borrell did, President Ursula von der Leyen has said that the funding is a sign of Europe’s commitment to its eastern neighbor and will speed up Ukraine’s progress toward a more “European” style of governance.
The EU’s big arms deal was put in danger when the UK said it would give Ukraine Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks and special ammunition made with very thick depleted uranium. Depleted uranium is better than other metals for destroying tanks since it gives out a lot of energy when it hits.
A gift of technology that can destroy tanks makes the Russians very angry.
A representative for the British government said, “We will be sending ammunition, including armor-piercing rounds that contain depleted uranium.” Britain will also provide armored vehicles and more ammunition to Ukraine, the spokesperson said. Armored automobiles of today can’t stop these rockets.
After meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who came to Moscow on Monday for a state visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin reacted strongly to the news and pledged revenge. Putin is said to have said, about the West using nuclear weapons, “If all this happens, Russia will have to respond in kind.”
The United Kingdom has said that Russia is trying to trick people into thinking that NATO is bringing nuclear weapons to Ukraine. The United States and the United Kingdom, which employ depleted uranium ammunition the most, both say that soldiers and civilians are not at risk of radiation from the ammunition.
The United States employs exceptionally thick metal in its M1 Abrams tanks for its defensive and penetrating characteristics.
On the other hand, Russia and other countries have been worried for a long time about NATO’s use of weapons made with depleted uranium. When asked about the use of depleted uranium in Kosovo and Serbia in the 1990s, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu corroborated what had already been said. He said, “There were consequences.” Everyone who utilized the weapons was putting their health in danger. The study’s writers thought about important health issues. But they didn’t look at how the weapons affected the people who were supposed to be hurt by them.
Russian diplomats at the British embassy were worried that this would make things worse, which might be hazardous. Most people know that these weapons are radioactive, toxic, and maybe even may cause cancer.
It costs a lot for the European Union to buy shells.
The European Union has started to assist Ukraine to buy 155mm artillery ammunition by giving them money. These missiles are a standard NATO round that is used in the weapons of many different countries. Companies from outside the NATO alliance include BAE Systems, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, and Rheinmetall are just a few of the many that help make the shell. They are not exclusively made in the United States. China, India, and Russia also make them. General Dynamics, which makes 11,000 rounds each month in Scranton, Pennsylvania, says that the 155mm is a “low-cost munition for general Harassment and Interdiction (H&I) fire missions.”
People that need to buy guns As proof, look at how much an EU partnership paid to buy a million 155mm artillery rounds. Prices were far more affordable before the Ukraine crisis. A “dumb” 155mm artillery shell cost well over $2,000 before the fight, which is a lot for an old piece of equipment that hasn’t changed much in decades (they cost around $150 each in the 1980s). The EU accord shows that the price of this service is going up by $4,000.
Guided artillery rounds replace regular projectiles. They use vanes or jets with GPS to change their path in the air and land exactly where they are supposed to. Even if each shell costs tens of thousands of dollars, that’s still a lot less than a guided missile, which might cost millions.