Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Israeli artillery strikes target Khan Younis, the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian media: IOF arrest leader Jamal al-Tawil, who was liberated as part of the prisoner exchange, from his home in al-Bireh.
Palestinian media: 'Israel' launches two airstrikes on eastern Khan Younis, Gaza.
Al Mayadeen’s correspondent in Gaza: Israeli occupation forces carry out demolitions in eastern Gaza City.
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry: The National Armed Forces will remain on alert and mobilized in the face of this extremely dangerous provocation.
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry: This is not a defense exercise, but rather a military aggression aimed at turning the Caribbean into a space for violence and US hegemony.
Venezuelan Foreign Ministry: The government of Trinidad and Tobago has surrendered the country's sovereignty to act as a military colony serving US interests.
Rapid Support Forces attack El-Fasher, west Sudan.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: One martyr and one wounded in an Israeli drone attack on the town of Hafir, west of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: An Israeli drone fired three missiles in the vicinity of the town of Bodai, west of Baalbek.

US in talks with Turkey to buy explosives for Ukraine

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Bloomberg
  • 27 Mar 2024 18:18
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

The Pentagon stated last month that a Turkish defense contractor would help the US in developing munition lines in Texas capable of manufacturing 30,000 artillery shells per month by the end of next year.

  • x
  • US in talks with Turkey to buy explosives for Ukraine
    Ukrainian servicemen fire at Russian positions from a U.S.-supplied M777 howitzer in Ukraine on July 14, 2022 (AP)

Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that the US is looking to acquire explosives from Turkey in order to increase artillery shell manufacturing amid a worsening ammunition shortfall in Ukraine.

According to the article, the US is most interested in the Turkish supply of trinitrotoluene, often known as TNT, and nitroguanidine, which are crucial components of 155mm artillery shell manufacture, as demand for the ammunition has increased dramatically over the last two years due to the situation in Ukraine.

The Pentagon stated last month that a Turkish defense contractor would help the US in developing munition lines in Texas capable of manufacturing 30,000 artillery shells per month by the end of next year.

The new Texas manufacturing lines are scheduled to manufacture roughly one-third of all US-made 155mm artillery shells by 2025, and the US Defense Department has already placed an order for 116,000 rounds of ammunition from Turkey's Arca Defense for delivery this year, Bloomberg detailed.

CNN previously cited NATO intelligence estimates that indicate Russia manufactures around 3 million artillery rounds per year, while the US and its European allies can only generate 1.2 million munitions yearly.

Since the onset of the war in Ukraine, Western nations have provided military and financial help to Kiev, something the Kremlin has repeatedly cautioned against, citing a further escalation of the issue. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that any container carrying weapons for Ukraine will be considered a suitable target for Russian attacks.

Related News

Trump rules out vice presidency bid in 2028

US detains British commentator Sami Hamdi amid pro-'Israel' pressure

Congress 'looting from its army' to support Ukraine: UnHerd

According to Malcom Kyeyune from UnHerd, the Pentagon's recent announcement of planning an additional $300 million to Ukraine did not come from "change under a Pentagon sofa cushion" but rather from the collapse of the US military. 

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan reported that the funding would be possible due to “unanticipated cost savings," but UnHerd believes it is essential to examine factual information regarding US aid to Ukraine. 

Firstly, Kyeyune stated that US aid has been primarily sourced from existing supplies due to inadequate capability to meet demand, and new manufacturing would take too long. As a result, the US robbed its warehouses of equipment and plundered ammo and weapons from its fighting units. It even deprived several of its allies, including South Korea, of significant amounts of materiel.

He notes how the cost of existing weapons is unknown since many shipped to Ukraine are no longer in production. While the US Army may have spent roughly $40,000 for a Stinger missile in the mid-1980s, estimating the cost now is hard since the cost of procuring 155mm artillery rounds for NATO members has multiplied since the start of the Ukraine war.

This allowed the US to deliver massive amounts of aid while only guessing their real costs. If, the author explains, costs are underestimated or if inflation and labor scarcity make it unprofitable for the defense sector to produce at that price, the final consequence is budgetary theft. Something has been taken away, and money has been assigned in principle to replace it, but owing to naivety, corruption, or malice, that money is insufficient to cover the cost of replacements.

Kyeyune notes that this previously occurred when Congress didn't want to fund the southern border wall during Donald Trump's presidency, and his administration briefly considered just pulling the money out of the US military budget.

In other news, the US Navy intends to support its ongoing operations in the Red Sea by diverting monies originally designated to critical modernization programs. Therefore, "the Navy’s budget is being cannibalized: critical future investments are being eaten up in order to sustain daily operations."

Congress is now moving money from "one pool to another," and the money being moved is not being replaced, he emphasizes.

  • Turkey
  • ukra
  • Russia
  • Nato
  • United States

Most Read

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Abu Hamza, the spokesperson for the Al-Quds Brigades, during a speech televised on October 22, 2025 (Al-Quds Brigades Military Media)

Al-Quds Brigades' Abu Hamza mourns leaders, vows continued resistance

  • Politics
  • 22 Oct 2025
US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

US missionary kidnapped in Niger capital, suspected taken toward Mali

  • Africa
  • 23 Oct 2025
What Marr evidently didn't seem to understand was that Hedges isn't saying that Western journalists manipulate the truth, but that they systematically amplify Israeli narratives they know are false. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Western journalists know they have a case to answer for their betrayal of Gaza, and it frightens them

  • Opinion
  • 24 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Sheikh Naim Qassem speaks during an interview with Al-Manar TV, October 26, 2025 (Screenshot)
Politics

Hezbollah ready to face 'Israel' in case of war: Sheikh Naim Qassem

A Russian cargo train arrives at Astara Railway Wharf, March 2018 (IRNA)
Economy

Tehran, Moscow to finalize INSTC rail project next month

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf addresses the media after submitting his candidacy for the Islamic Republic's upcoming presidential election in Tehran on June 3, 2024 (AP)
Politics

UNSCR 2231 termination marks major win for Iran’s diplomacy: Qalibaf

ap
Politics

'Israel' killed 40 Palestinian children in West Bank since January: UN

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS