https://www.politico.eu/article/czec...uropean-union/
Czechs want EU to shop abroad for Ukraine shells
BRUSSELS — Europe is falling way short on its pledge to send 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine by March, and the Czechs say it’s high time to look beyond the borders of the EU for supplies.
Ukrainian forces on the front lines are warning they are running
perilously low on ammunition to take on the Russian invaders in a war dominated by artillery bombardments.
The EU had originally pledged to supply 1 million shells by March, and France led calls for Europe to build up its homegrown industrial prowess to deliver munitions to Kyiv. However, the EU now says 524,000 shells will reach Ukraine by the March deadline, with 1.1 million only promised by the end of the year.
Frustrated by this shortfall, Prague is pushing EU countries to finance the purchase of what it estimates are 450,000 rounds of artillery available outside the bloc, four diplomats and a person familiar with the talks told POLITICO…..