NEW YORK, January 31. /TASS/. Ukraine has warned its Western allies that its armed forces are facing a "critical" shortage of artillery shells, Bloomberg reported, citing a copy of a letter from Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov.

The letter sent to Kiev's European allies said that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are unable to fire more than 2,000 shells a day across the 1,500-kilometer-long front line. That’s less than a third of the ammunition Russia uses, Bloomberg wrote.

Umerov said the shortage is worsening every day and asked EU allies to make a greater effort to meet the pledge to supply Ukraine with 1 million shells. He wrote that it’s standard practice that the side with the most ammunition wins.

Earlier, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said that from February 2023 to March 2024 the bloc will transfer to Ukraine only about 500,000 artillery rounds, or half of what was promised.

Ukraine received no international financial aid in January for the first time since February 2022, said Yaroslav Zheleznyak, a member of the Ukrainian parliament. "This is the first time since the start of full-scale hostilities when we received no international financial assistance," he wrote on Telegram. "There is no news yet. But we hope to hear good news from the European Union tomorrow."

"Still, we got something, [namely] $390 million from Japan," Zheleznyak wrote. According to the press service of the Ukrainian finance ministry, the money was allocated as part of the World Bank’s project to repay social benefits and restore agricultural production. The aid provides $89.8 million in the form of a non-refundable grant and $300 million - as a loan.

Ukraine’s 2024 budget deficit is estimated at $43.9 bln. The Kiev government plans to compensate the vast majority of it with funds allocated by its Western partners. However, the US Congress has so far been unable to approve further assistance. European Union countries were also unable to come to terms during their latest summit in December 2023 and will convene for an emergency meeting on the issue on February 1.