Free Republic

The West is failing to catch up to Russia's production of the most basic unit of war for the past half-millennium — gunpowder. The modern propellants and explosives that power war have largely been offshored. While Western manufacturers are churning out shell casings, they are short on the materials to fill them with. A dearth of ammunition from NATO allies has long hampered Ukraine, but is more recently alarming the Western alliance. "Putin's war machine is speeding up, not slowing down," NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said at a June 9 speech in London. "In terms of ammunition, Russia produces...

President Trump went off on Joe Biden for emptying out the US’s munitions stockpiles. TGP reported earlier this week that the Pentagon is halting some weapons shipments to Ukraine after it was revealed that Joe Biden depleted the US stockpiles.The Trump Administration is withholding shipments promised by the Biden Regime after the Pentagon’s policy chief Elbridge Colby found the US’s stockpiles of munitions and air defense missiles are dangerously low.Joe Biden sent billions of dollars to Ukraine and now the US’s total number of artillery rounds, air defense missiles and precision munitions are sinking.' Biden sent Ukraine as much money...

President Donald Trump said Thursday that no progress was made in ending the war with Ukraine after he conducted another lengthy call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump spoke to reporters at Joint Base Andrews ahead of a trip to Des Moines, Iowa. -snip- We had a call. It was a pretty long call. We talked about a lot of things including Iran and we also talked about, as you know, the war with Ukraine,' Trump said. 'And I'm not happy about that,' he said. Trump was then asked if he made progress with Putin on a peace deal with...

President Trump spoke by phone Thursday with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine but made no headway on halting the fighting. “I didn’t make any progress with him today at all,” Trump said of Putin, speaking to reporters as he left Washington to deliver a speech in Iowa. According to a Kremlin briefing on the call, Trump urged Putin to quickly end the war in Ukraine but Putin refused. It was the two leaders’ first conversation since U.S. officials said this week they had paused a series of weapons shipments for Ukraine. Trump indicated the U.S. hadn’t...

A Texas mother has been arrested and charged for allegedly buying ammunition and tactical gear for her son's planned "mass targeted violence" at his middle school, officials said. Ashley Pardo, 33, was arrested on Monday and charged with aiding in commission of terrorism after she allegedly provided ammunition and tactical gear to her son, whose behavior demonstrated plans for a "mass targeted violence" aimed at Rhodes Middle School in San Antonio, according to an affidavit obtained by ABC News.

MADISON, Wis. -- A Florida man who was found to have communicated with the Abundant Life Christian School shooter was arrested for allegedly planning a mass shooting at a law enforcement facility. According to the arrest affidavit Damien Blade Allen and the 15-year-old girl who police say opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School in December, killing two and injuring six, exchanged messages for months over TikTok. A joint investigation between FBI and US revealed Damien Blade Allen allegedly conspired with other individuals online to commit mass violence. Allen was also arrested for impersonating a law enforcement officer. He allegedly...

President Trump has entered office at full throttle. He has been enacting significant parts of his trade policies much faster than most previous presidents. One of his stated goals is to stop unfair trade practices against the United States. Part of that effort has been the widespread use of tariffs to bring other countries to the bargaining table.Ammunition supplies inside the United States have been fairly stable for many months. Prices have been steady or dropping. The shortages associated with the Obama years were not duplicated during the Biden years, although future importation permits for Russian ammunition were blocked by...

The Czech Republic is expelling 18 employees of the Russian embassy in Prague, who were allegedly "identified as members of the Russian secret services", Foreign Minister Jan Hamacek said at news conference. According to local media reports, the move comes in response to evidence obtained by the country's security services which suggests Russia's involvement in two ammunition depot explosions in 2014 in the Czech Republic which killed two people. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Andrej Babis said in the same news conference that "there is well-grounded suspicion about the involvement of officers of the Russian intelligence service GRU, unit 29155, in the...

CHEYENNE — Already facing serious federal charges for allegedly carrying 18,000 rounds of ammunition through Wyoming, Ricardo Paez-Quinones, 35, dug himself into an even deeper hole on Friday. Paez-Quinones was a no-show for his bond hearing on Friday morning in U.S. District Court, leading Judge Alan Johnson to put out a bench warrant for his arrest. Johnson suspected that the topic of his bond was what led Paez-Quinones to avoid coming to court, leading him to engage “in some form of self-help.” “We can receive an explanation for that at a later time,” Johnson remarked. Paez-Quinones is an illegal immigrant...

Two Mexican nationals were arrested in Colorado last month after authorities found them transporting 180,000 rounds of ammunition during a traffic stop, federal officials have announced. Caesar Ramon Martinez Solis, 41, and Humberto Ivan Amador Gavira, 24, were pulled over on March 26th in Cañon City, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Colorado. Detectives from Fremont County stopped their white Chevrolet van after it failed to dim its headlights, didn’t signal a turn, and had a broken license plate light, according to an arrest affidavit.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized approximately 11,000 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition being smuggled into the United States from Mexico. CBP officers assigned to the El Paso port of entry on November 5 encountered a 2011 Honda Ridgeline arriving from Mexico. The officer directed the driver, a Mexican national, to a secondary inspection station after a “Low Energy Portal Scan” revealed possible anomalies. A K-9 search and a secondary Z-portal x-ray scan confirmed the anomalies. Officers began a physical search of the vehicle and discovered multiple plastic bags packed with loose 7.62 ammunition, according to a statement from CBP...

Gun controls, including a semiautomatic firearms ban and ammunition controls, secured final passage in the Colorado legislature Friday and have been sent to Gov. Jared Polis’s (D) desk. On February 20, 2025, Breitbart News noted that the semiautomatic firearms ban had passed the Colorado Senate. In order to secure Gov. Polis’s support, Senate Democrats added language to the ban which allows gun purchasers to secure an exemption to the prohibition by going through a process similar to concealed carry permit vetting, then taking a “four-hour training course.” Would-be purchasers who do not have hunter safety certification will have to go...

One of those factory videos, but this one shows the process of very large scale manufacture of small arms ammunition. Sellier&Bellot is the largest Euro small arms ammo manufacturer. I believe this is the factory at Vlašim, Czech Republic. This is a tour of the production line. Ian describes and comments on every step.

Jan 3 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday issued the final mining permit for Perpetua Resources' (PPTA.O), opens new tab Idaho antimony and gold project, a move aimed at spurring U.S. production of a critical mineral at the center of a widening trade war between Washington and Beijing. Permitting for the mine, backed by billionaire investor John Paulson, comes after Beijing last month blocked exports to the U.S. of antimony,... Perpetua's mine will supply more than 35% of America's annual antimony needs once it opens by 2028 and produce 450,000 ounces of gold each year,...The project has not won...

A staffer for Democratic Representative Joe Morelle (D-NY) was arrested on Friday on Capitol Hill after Capitol Police discovered ammunition in his bag during routine security screening at the Cannon House Office Building. Michael Hopkins, 38, was charged with unlawful possession of ammunition following the incident. According to Capitol Police, Hopkins placed his bag through an X-ray scanner at the security checkpoint, where officers identified suspicious items on the screen. Upon further inspection, they found four ammunition magazines and eleven rounds of ammunition inside his bag, according to WROC. Hopkins reportedly told officers he had forgotten the ammunition was there,...

Just over 54 percent of Colorado voters approved on Tuesday Proposition KK, which contains an excise tax on the in-state sale of guns and ammunition. CBS News reported that roughly 1.3 million Colorado voters supported the proposition, while 1.1 million opposed it. The approved tax is 6.5 percent, which means the price of $400 firearm will rise $26 and the price of a $1,000 firearm will increase by $65 because of the new tax.

Aug. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. Customs and Border Protection said on Wednesday that its officers at the El Paso port of entry confiscated 92,000 rounds of large-caliber ammunition leaving the United States over the weekend. The seized ammunition nearly tripled the amount of ammunition agents seized in outward bound inspections at the El Paso field office over the past three fiscal years combined, CBP said. Border Patrol said the ammunition was found on a commercial bus leaving the United States for Mexico at the Bridge of America port of entry in El Paso. "CBP's primary mission is to inspect all...

The Hawaii legislature has passed a bill that forbids adults aged 18-20 from purchasing or possessing ammunition. It also forbids anyone from transferring ammunition to people under the age of 21. Violation of the Bill would be punishable as a misdemeanor. On May 2, 2024, the Hawaii Legislature sent Bill SB2845 to Democratic Governor Josh Green for his signature. Governor Green (D). Governor Green has signed several state laws restricting firearms ownership and carry in Hawaii. Governor Green (D) is expected to sign SB2845 into law. Hawaii government is effectively defying the Supreme Court ruling in Bruen. From captol.hawaii.gov:SECTION 2.Chapter...

A technological development from an American company of a way to legally sell ammunition has been going viral. The use of vending machines to legally validate age and sell ammunition causes some people to ignore all facts and logic and emote “guns are bad!”The vending machines in question, from American Rounds, use computer technology to validate age with picture ID. If the person attempting to purchase ammunition is over 21 years old, they may purchase the ammunition using a picture ID, which the machine validates using facial recognition software. Only credit or debit card purchases seem possible. There does not...

Supermarkets in multiple states are now selling firearm ammunition right out of a dispenser. VIDEO AT LINK.................... Americans love guns. Not only do roughly 40 percent of Americans say they live in a household with guns, but the U.S. beats out every other country on Earth when it comes to the ratio of guns to people (the 2nd most gun-dense country is Yemen, and it’s not even close). Indeed, the U.S. is actually the only country in the world that has more firearms than people. Congratulations, everybody. Given all that, it’s really not surprising that, in some states, you can...