International
Ukraine War Drains U.S Ammunition Stockpiles
The United States will soon be unable to provide Ukraine with certain types of ammunition that are essential to Kyiv’s battle against Russia’s invasion, as supplies are being used up faster than they can be replaced.
Washington has become by far the largest supplier of arms to Ukraine since Russia launched the invasion on February 24, with more than $16.8 billion in military assistance provided since that date.
But US stockpiles of some equipment are “reaching the minimum levels needed for war plans and training,” and restocking to pre-invasion levels could take years, Mark Cancian of the Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in a recent analysis.
Washington is “learning lessons” from the conflict about ammunition needs in a great power war, which are “far greater” than expected, a US military official acknowledged on the condition of anonymity.
American defence firms were forced to drastically reduce production in the 1990s as the United States slashed defence spending following the collapse of the Soviet Union, and their number fell dramatically, from dozens to single digits.
Now, the US government must convince the industry to reopen assembly lines and relaunch production of items such as Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, which have not been made since 2020.
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Some US-provided equipment has become emblematic of the war in Ukraine, such as Javelin anti-tank weapons that were widely used by Kyiv’s forces to blunt the Russian advance on the capital, and the Himars, a precision rocket system now playing a key role in counter-offensives against Moscow’s troops in the east and south.
‘No alternatives’
But US stocks of ammunition for Himars – which fires GPS-guided rockets known as GMLRS, with a range of more than 80 kilometres (50 miles) – are dwindling.
“If the United States sent one-third of that inventory to Ukraine (as has been the case with Javelin and Stinger), Ukraine would receive 8,000 to 10,000 rockets.
“That inventory would likely last several months, but, when the inventory is exhausted, there are no alternatives,” said Cancian, who previously worked on weapons procurement for the US government.
“Production is about 5,000 a year. Although the United States is working to increase that amount, and money has recently been allocated for that purpose, it will take years,” he said, adding that older equipment could help fill the gap.
The United States has provided some 8,500 Javelin missiles to Kyiv, but the production of a weapon that has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance is only about 1,000 per year.
The US government ordered $350 million worth of the missiles in May, but it will again take several years before stockpiles are replenished.
The United States has also supplied more than 800,000 NATO standard 155 mm artillery shells to Kyiv – three-quarters of the total amount delivered by all Western countries, according to official Pentagon statistics.
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The amount of shells Washington has provided “is probably close to the limit that the United States is willing to give without risk to its own warfighting capabilities,” Cancian said.
US production of these shells currently stands at 14,000 per month, but the Pentagon has announced that it aims to increase that figure to 36,000 within three years. That would still only bring annual production to 432,000 – less than half of what has been provided to Ukraine in seven months.
And the US defence industry production is speeding up, Laura Cooper, a senior defence department official responsible for Russia and Ukraine, said Tuesday.
“The United States will continue to stand with the Ukrainian people and provide them with the security assistance they need to defend themselves for as long as it takes,” she said.
(AFP)
International
Relief as Israel agrees to ceasefire with Lebanon
Relief as Israel agrees to ceasefire with Lebanon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will bring a US-brokered proposal for a ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon to his government for approval as soon as Tuesday evening.
He said in a televised address that he would put “a ceasefire outline” to ministers “this evening”.
He however did not say how long the truce would last, noting “the length of the ceasefire depends on what happens in Lebanon”.
But it later learnt that the ceasefire would is for 60 days.
During the period, Hezbollah fighters are expected to retreat 40 kilometres from Israel’s border, with Israeli ground forces withdrawing from Lebanese territory.
“If Hezbollah violates the agreement and attempts to rearm, we will strike,” Netanyahu warned.
Key Israel backer the United States has led ceasefire efforts for Lebanon alongside France.
US President Joe Biden is optimistic the deal will lead to a “permanent cessation of hostilities”.
Biden added that the US would lead another push for a ceasefire in Gaza.
“In full coordination with the United States, we are maintaining full military freedom of action,” Netanyahu said, outlining the seven-front war Israel says it faces in Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Yemen, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Iran.
Even as Netanyahu spoke about the ceasefire, the Israeli military carried out multiple strikes on heart of Beirut while the army said some 15 projectiles had entered Israeli airspace from Lebanon.
Demonstrators raise placards and Israeli flags during a protest in front of the Israeli Defence Ministry in the coastal city Tel Aviv on November 26, 2024, against a possible ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon. – Israel’s security cabinet has started discussing a proposed ceasefire deal in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, an Israeli official confirmed to AFP on November 26. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
The war in Lebanon escalated after nearly a year of limited cross-border exchanges of fire begun by Hezbollah, which said it was acting in support of Hamas after its October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.
The war has killed at least 3,823 people in Lebanon since October 2023, according to the health ministry, most of them since September.
On the Israeli side, the hostilities have killed at least 82 soldiers and 47 civilians, authorities say.
Netanyahu said the ceasefire would allow Israel to focus on “the Iranian threat” and ramp up its fight against Hamas in Gaza.
“With Hezbollah out of the picture, Hamas is left on its own,” he said.
“We will increase our pressure on Hamas and that will help us in our sacred mission of releasing our hostages.”
During last year’s Hamas attack, militants took 251 hostages, of whom 97 are still held in Gaza, including 34 the army has declared dead.
International
Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs
Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs
BEIRUT: Israeli strikes pounded a densely-populated part of the Lebanese capital and its southern suburbs on Tuesday, hours ahead of an anticipated announcement of a ceasefire ending hostilities between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah.
A strike on Beirut hit the Noueiri district with no evacuation warning and killed at least one person, Lebanon’s health ministry said in a preliminary toll.
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Minutes later, at least 10 Israeli strikes hit Beirut’s southern suburbs. They began approximately 30 minutes after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for 20 locations in the area, the largest such warning yet.
As the strikes were under way, Israel’s military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said the air force was conducting a “widespread attack” on Hezbollah targets across the city.
Israeli strikes pound central Beirut, suburbs
ARAB NEWS
International
Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him
Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has fiercely criticised the legal cases brought against him, calling them “empty and lawless”.
He accused Democrats of weaponising the judicial system to target him as a political opponent.
In a strongly worded statement, Trump alleged that over $100 million in taxpayer money had been wasted in what he described as a politically driven effort to undermine his influence.
“Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before,” he said, pointing to high-profile prosecutors, including Georgia’s Fani Willis and New York Attorney General Letitia James, as key figures in what he called a “political hijacking.”
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Trump also accused Willis of colluding with Nathan Wade, whom he described as “her lover” and lacking the experience to handle such cases.
He claimed Wade was paid “millions,” allegedly enabling lavish trips and cruises.
Letitia James, who is pursuing a civil fraud case against Trump, was also criticised.
He claimed she had campaigned on a promise to “get Trump” in her bid for office, an action he labelled “unethical” and “probably illegal.”
Trump also mentioned Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, alleging that Bragg initially resisted prosecuting him but was pressured into action by the Justice Department and the Democratic Party.
Describing the series of legal actions as a “low point in the history of our Country,” Trump maintained his resolve, declaring: “I persevered, against all odds, and WON.”
Over $100m wasted, Trump mocks Democrats for targeting him
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