Ukraine War Update NEWS: Military Aid News

"The wake-up call for the US and by extension NATO, is how ill-prepared we are as nations if war was to happen next week."

Hello Team!

Jonathan provides an update on military aid news for Ukraine on 9th November 2023.

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EU aid to Ukraine

• The EU's Commissioner for Budget and Admin is confident Hungary cannot block aid to Ukraine, despite Hungary's attempts to use leverage for political ends.
• The European Commission believes they can find a solution that only requires agreement from 26 member states, not all 27.

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Ukrainian military training

• A new contingent of Ukrainian soldiers has begun training on the Hawk anti-aircraft missile system. It's unclear if this is the first time or subsequent training.
• The Czech Republic has extended training of the Ukrainian military until the end of 2024.

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Drones for Ukraine

• The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence has prepared a draft decree to allow government customers to more easily buy civilian drones. The current process involves a lot of red tape.
• Hundreds of drones were sent to the front as part of the "Army of Drones" project, including some secret models. The Minister of Digital Transformation said "the occupiers will feel the power of innovation."
• Ukraine has a new drone called the "Hunter Killer" with a range of 1000km and 15kg payload. It is designed to bypass Russian air defences and electronic warfare. It can be controlled remotely in autonomous, semi-autonomous or manual modes.

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UK military aid and readiness concerns

• Despite investment in replenishing stockpiles, British officials acknowledge privately that munitions stockpile levels are "very bad". The UK has stalled in providing aid because "the cupboards are bare".
• This is a challenge for all NATO forces. The Ukraine war has been a wake-up call to how ill-prepared the US and NATO would be if a war happened next week.
• The US is in a better position than the UK due to larger budgets and stockpiles, but has still seen stockpiles eaten into over the past 20 years without proper replacement. The war is allowing the US to ramp up production.
• The UK spends a lot on defence compared to other nations but doesn't get good value, with money wasted on outdated projects. More investment is needed in ramping up production to be prepared for war.

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German military aid and industry

• The German company Rheinmetall is at the centre of providing equipment for the Ukraine war in a way the British company BAE Systems is trying to emulate.
• Rheinmetall has received a large contract from the German government to provide 100,000 120mm mortar rounds to Ukraine. This benefits Germany's own readiness.
• Germany has provided an extensive list of equipment to Ukraine, both directly and indirectly by enabling other countries to send German-made gear. This includes tanks, fighting vehicles, anti-aircraft systems, howitzers, anti-tank weapons and more.
• However, Germany is still refusing to provide the Taurus cruise missile that Ukraine has requested.

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Other military aid news

• The new Slovakian government did not approve a €40.3 million military aid package to Ukraine that was prepared by the previous administration, as they had indicated during the election campaign.
• Russia has formed a battalion of 70 Ukrainian prisoners of war who have sworn allegiance to Russia and will soon deploy to Ukraine. Their motivations are unclear.
• North Korea has transferred an estimated 500,000 artillery rounds to Russia over 2 months, which is less than some previous analyses suggested but still a large amount.
• Russia is trying to get back helicopter engines it previously sold to Belarus, Egypt, Pakistan and Brazil due to a lack of components caused by sanctions. The sanctions are affecting the maintenance of Russia's aircraft.

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Wrap up

The rest of the update on geopolitical news will be covered in the next video. Jonathan thanks viewers for watching.

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