DONETSK REGION
: For Ukrainian gun commander Oleksandr Kozachenko, the long-awaited
US ammunition
can't come fast enough as he and his comrades struggle to hold off relentless
Russian attacks
. His unit's US-supplied M777 howitzer, which once hurled 100 shells a day at the encroaching enemy, is now often reduced to fewer than 10. "It's a luxury if we can fire 30 shells."
America says it's rushing ammunition and weapons to
Ukraine
following the delayed approval of a $61 billion aid package by Congress last month.
As of early May, though, two artillery units visited by Reuters on the eastern frontline said they were still waiting for a boost in deliveries and operating at a fraction of the rate they need to hold back the Russians.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told AFP in an exclusive interview that he expects
Russia
to step up its offensive in the northeast and warned Kyiv only has a quarter of the air defences it needs to hold the front line. Russian forces, which had made only moderate advances in recent months, launched a surprise assault in the Kharkiv region on May 10 that has resulted in their biggest territorial gains in a year-and-a-half.
Zelensky said Russian troops managed to advance between five to 10 kilometres along the northeastern border before being stopped by Ukrainian forces, but added that the region could be the "first wave" in a wider offensive. "I won't say it's a great success (for Russia) but we have to be sober and understand that they are going deeper into our territory," he said, speaking from Kyiv on Friday in his first interview with foreign media since the offensive began.
Zelensky said the situation in the Kharkiv region has been "controlled" but "not stabilised".
He doubled down on pleas to allies to send more air defence and fighter jets to combat Russia's air superiority as the war grinds through its third year. "Today, we have about 25% of what we need to defend Ukraine. I'm talking about air defence," he said.
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