PARIS, February 15. /TASS/. The armed forces of France are experiencing shortages of munitions against the backdrop of the country’s military aid to the Kiev government, the Le Figaro newspaper wrote.
"Ground forces are facing shortages of 155mm munitions [used in howitzers and artillery cannons]," the paper quoted Julien Rancoule, a member of the French parliament’s lower chamber representing the National Rally party, who compiled a report about the country’s ammunition reserves jointly with another lawmaker, Vincent Bru of the Democratic Movement.
The report "outlines reasons for re-assessing stocks of ammunition, keeping in mind the possibility of a major standoff," Le Figaro reported.
Bru, in turn, urges to replenish the country’s military arsenals. In his opinion, the policy of keeping defense stockpiles at the minimal level for economic reasons should be abandoned.
"Tensions between those who favor supporting Ukraine and those who want to save the stockpiles for national defense reasons are expected to grow" in the near future, the newspaper said.
Jamie Shea, former NATO's deputy assistant secretary general, earlier told Sky News that NATO had largely used up the available military stocks while helping Ukraine, and will have to urgently deal with the problem of replenishing its stocks.