The U.S. Army has depleted its 155 mm artillery round stockpile and is asking Congress for $3.1 billion to help turn this around.
The ammunition shortfall is due to the United States giving 2 million artillery rounds to Ukraine and Israel.
Doug Bush, chief U.S. Army weapons buyer, told reporters that supplemental funding is currently being considered by Congress as a part of a $106 billion request made by President Joe Biden.
The president wants Congress to provide the $106 billion in supplemental funding, with the bulk of the money going to bolster Ukraine’s defenses and the remainder split among Israel, the Indo-Pacific, and border enforcement.
Part of this request would go to modernizing or building 155-millimeter artillery production facilities across many states, including Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, and California.
“The funding will expand production lines, strengthen the American economy, and create new jobs,” Mr. Bush said.
Of the $3.1 billion, about half would go to boosting industrial capacity, with the remainder going to buying rounds, he said.
Other parts of President Biden’s $106 billion supplemental request would go to expanding production of other munitions, Mr. Bush said, including funds to boost the annual production rate of Patriot air defense interceptors from 550 to 650.
Demand for 155 mm artillery rounds soared in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The United States and its allies have sent more than 2 million rounds of 155 mm ammunition to Kyiv for use in the war against Russian forces.
The United States plans to increase its monthly production rate for 155 mm artillery shells to 100,000 in 2025.
Worries over increased strain on an already thinly spread munitions supply chain began when it was revealed that the Biden administration had ordered munitions back to Israel that it had initially removed in support of Ukraine.
The United States had previously stored 300,000 rounds of 155 mm artillery ammunition in Israel but moved half of that to Europe in January to support Ukraine. It has since returned the rounds to Israel, however, following the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks and Israel’s subsequent declaration of war on the terrorist organization.
Ukraine Package
The U.S. Department of Defense announced earlier this month a new $425 million military assistance package for Ukraine, which will include laser-guided munitions to shoot down Russian drones.
The new package includes $125 million in munitions that will be drawn from existing U.S. stockpiles.
Ukraine will receive additional munitions for its air defense, ammunition for U.S.-provided rocket systems, artillery rounds, javelins, and anti-tank systems to help it fight against Russian forces on its soil.
The remaining $300 million will come from the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI), which allows the Biden administration to procure weapons from industry. This fund will be used to provide Ukraine with laser-guided munitions to counter Russia’s drones.
Andrew Thornebrooke, Aldgra Fredly, and Reuters contributed to this report.
