New Delhi: In the backdrop of a buildup to a crucial battle between Russian and Ukrainian forces in the east of Ukraine, the US Department of Defense (DoD) has reached out to the private industry—makers and manufacturers of weapons, military systems and platforms—to offer products that can be rushed into Ukraine at a short notice even as 8-10 planeloads of military aid are entering the war on a daily basis.
A Request for Information (RFI) note issued by the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) Acquisition on Friday said: “The Department is exploring options which would accelerate production and build more capacity across the industrial base for weapons and equipment that can be rapidly exported, deployed with minimal training, and that are proven effective in the battlefield.”
“To that end, the Department seeks information from across industry on weapons systems or other commercial capabilities related to air defense, anti-armor, anti-personnel, coastal defense, counter battery, unmanned aerial systems, and communications (e.g., secure radios, satellite internet)," it added. The industry has been given 15 days time till May 6 to respond to the government call.
Underlining the importance of frequent, direct dialogue between the DoD and the industry and commercial partners, the RFI notice laid down the three US strategic objectives as delivering critical commercial and military capabilities to Ukraine, enhancing the preparedness of US-NATO forces and supporting allies and partners in bolstering defence capabilities. The development is taking place before a crucial meeting on Tuesday (April 26) of US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and his counterparts from a handful of nations including non-NATO members at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany that will discuss both the current and future defence needs of Ukraine.
On the agenda, among other issues, is exploring and deciding on how to energize the defense industrial base in order to ensure a continued flow of security assistance to Ukraine. “Eight to 10 flights a day are going into the theatre, not all of those flights are American flights, but most of them are. And every single day,"DoD spokesperson John F Kirby in response to a query on Friday.
On Friday, the US government announced another tranche of a security assistance package valued at $800 million and which includes 72 additional M-777 155 mm howitzers, 144,000 artillery rounds for those howitzers, 72 tactical vehicles with which to tow those howitzers, more than 121 Phoenix Ghost tactical unmanned aerial systems and an array of field equipment and spare parts.
This is over and above the April 15 arms package announcement, also valued at $800 million arms package, which included 18 M-777 155mm Howitzers, 40,000 artillery rounds, unmanned coastal defence vessels, 10 AN/TPQ-36 counter artillery radars, two AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel air surveillance systems, 500 Javelin missiles, anti-armour systems, 300 Switchblade drones, 200 M113 Armoured Personnel Carriers, 100 Armoured High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles and 11 Mi-17 helicopters besides body armour, optics and laser range finders, explosives, and protective equipment against chemical, biological and nuclear attacks.
The additional M-777 howitzers—to be of key tactical importance in the flat and expansive terrain of Donbas—are enough to equip five artillery battalions. “The US has now committed more than $4 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration, including $3.4 billion just since the beginning of the invasion on the 24th of February,” Kirby added.
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