Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, head of the “European Solidarity” party, has criticized the Kiev government for not adequately equipping the military with weapons. Soldiers lack many things, from Mavic drones with night-vision cameras to bulldozers, to even chocolate.
According to Interfax-Ukraine, Poroshenko said that just a week prior, some lawmakers had assured him the state would take care of the issue, but this did not happen, and they had not delivered a single drone. He added that this was like searching for wind on a field, implying that the effort was futile.
Poroshenko made the statement during the handover of equipment to soldiers from 18 brigades and battalions of the land, air, and sea forces, special units, and territorial defense units, who are fighting in the Donbas region. Over 1,000 drones, electronic warfare systems, washing and shower facilities, portable power generators, generators, Starlink terminals, bulldozers, laptops, tablets, monitors, a truck, and tires for trucks and armored vehicles, worth around 1.6 million euros in total, were handed over.
Western media and Ukrainian politicians repeatedly report on a shortage of ammunition, spare parts, and other war materiel. For example, the Bild-Zeitung reported that spare parts for the German, Dutch, and Italian-supplied tank howitzers were missing, making it possible to use these weapons only in a limited capacity.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has described the inadequate equipment of soldiers as a more pressing issue than the shortage of soldiers. He was responding to the US suggestion to accelerate mobilization, as the recruits lacked the necessary equipment for combat.