Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala declared that 15 nations are prepared to participate in the initiative led by his country to tackle the shortage of ammunition, especially artillery shells, for Ukraine.
In particular, this initiative has already been supported by the Netherlands, which allocated 100 million euros, and now Belgium, which announced the allocation of 200 million euros.
Read more: How Many 122mm and 155mm Projectiles Can Be Transferred to Ukraine Shortly
Let's remind that the Czech initiative involves Prague finding the opportunity to purchase 800,000 artillery ammunition in third countries, including 500,000 of 155mm caliber and another 300,000 of 122mm caliber.
At the same time, 300 million euros is already a significant amount, but when it comes to how much it is in ammunition, it all depends on the price at which they will be purchased and from whom.
In particular, 155mm ammunition, as demonstrated by NATO's order through its procurement agency NSPA, showed a price of 5,450 euros per unit. At this price point, it amounts to 59.6 thousand 155mm shells of new Western production.
But in this case, we are talking about third countries, including South Korea, Turkey, South Africa, and even India. The last one, by the way, is a manufacturer of ammunition.
The cost of Indian ammunition is currently unknown, but in 2017 and 2019, based on contracts for the UAE, their cost was slightly lower than European prices. In the first contract, 40,000 shells were estimated at $40 million, and in the second, 50,000 at $46 million, or $920-1000 per unit.
And it's quite possible that even now, shells in India, as well as in other non-Western countries, may cost slightly less, especially since it may not necessarily involve shells of new production. Otherwise, to purchase the discovered half a million 155mm ammunition, it would be necessary to find 2.72 billion dollars.
Reminder, in early February, it became known that the Czech Republic proposed to allies to purchase almost half a million artillery munitions for Ukraine—specifically 450 thousand—outside the EU, including in South Korea, South Africa, as well as Turkey (in the latter case, a scenario is entirely possible where the Turks will replenish American stocks, and the U.S. will transfer the corresponding quantity of munitions to Ukraine).
Read more: Polish Armament Agency Ordered Big Banch of 155 mm Shells
