During the visit of US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to Kyiv, he was informed that Ukraine needs 17 million shells, as well as 350-400 billion dollars of forces and resources in order to de-occupy the entire territory of the country, reports Ukrainska Pravda online newspaper.
"Calculations of the [Ukrainian] General Staff show that 350-400 billion dollars of forces and resources are needed to fulfill the task of liberating the entire territory of Ukraine. Some of the planning ideas were presented to Austin by the General Staff during his visit to Kyiv in November.
"Austin was informed about the demand for 17 million shells. To put it mildly, he was surprised because you can't collect so many shells in the whole world," said a high-ranking official of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
According to the source, Austin noted that the Chief of the Ukrainian General Staff, Valery Zaluzhny, complained to him about the intervention of the president's office.
"Austin later told us that Zaluzhny complained about how he was disturbed, that the office is not like that, the first one is not like this, the third one is not like that. Well, it is clear that the president also learned about those conversations. And they do not contribute to trust."
At the same time, the president's office is inclined to think that Zaluzhny's removal will help his political career, so a considerable part of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s team is categorically against the resignation of the current commander-in-chief."
