Free Republic

The artillery duel in Ukraine’s east shows no signs of slowing as troops gobble through thousands of 155mm rounds every single day. A senior defense official told reporters in a background briefing on Friday that Ukrainian forces are firing some 3,000 155mm shells per day at Russian forces. The revelation came amid questioning on the latest tranche of weapons and ammunition being sent to Ukraine, including, for the first time 1,000 guided 155mm 'smart' shells. The official said despite the high usage rate, Ukrainian forces still have “substantial stores” of 155mm rounds and are far from running out with more...

Ukraine plans a "million-strong army" equipped with Nato weapons to retake the south of the country from occupying Russians, the defence minister says. Retaking the areas around the Black Sea coast was vital to the country's economy, Oleksii Reznikov said. However, the comments are more of a rallying cry than a concrete plan, says the BBC's Joe Inwood in Kyiv.