Ukraine has received more than 230 battle tanks and 1,550 assorted combat vehicles from its Western allies and now has all the equipment and munitions it needs to launch its spring offensive against Russia, the commander of U.S. forces in Europe told a congressional panel on April 26.
“Over 98 percent of the combat vehicles are already there,” U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) Commander Gen. Christopher Cavoli said. “I am very confident that we have delivered the matériel that they need, and we’ll continue a pipeline to sustain their operations as well.”
The 54-nation Ukraine Defense Contact Group has been “very generous” in responding to Kyiv’s calls for assistance in fighting off Russia’s invasion, “especially with regard to tanks and armored fighting vehicles,” Cavoli said.
“And we have been shipping it into the country,” he said. “The Ukrainians are in a good position.”
Cavoli, who’s both USEUCOM commander and NATO supreme allied commander Europe (SACEUR), was responding to queries from House Armed Forces Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), who questioned whether the Biden administration has provided Ukraine with everything it needs to defeat Russia decisively to avoid a lengthy, costly stalemate.
“I’m hopeful the coming counteroffensive will provide a final stinging defeat for Putin,” Rogers said. “But that will require the president to stop being so reluctant to provide Ukraine with the capabilities it needs to be successful. His hesitation over being too escalatory has only prolonged the war and driven up cost in terms of dollars and lives.”
He said the administration should reconsider its reluctance to provide Ukraine with F-16s and cluster artillery munitions.
Cavoli and Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celeste Wallander both said F-16s weren’t a high priority on Ukrainian military planners’ wish lists.
Wallander said fighter aircraft ranked “about eighth” among Ukraine’s military needs. She said Poland and Slovakia have provided MiG-29s, “legacy Soviet aircraft” that Ukrainians are familiar with.
“They know how to use them; they know how to maintain them,” she said.
The “highest priority capabilities” requested by Ukraine are in “air defense, artillery, and armor,” Wallander said.
Rogers said the United States has a stockpile of 3 million cluster bombs that can be fired from the 155 mm Howitzers provided to Ukraine and questioned why the Biden administration won’t send any there.
“Russia is using these munitions right now against the Ukrainians,” he said to Cavoli. “Can you please explain the battlefield military utility that giving Ukraine the [cluster munitions] that we have would have in particular in places like Bakhmut?”
Cavoli explained that the cluster bombs, which are banned by 123 nations, work as “dual purpose” munitions against “mixed targets of personnel and equipment, especially when those targets are gathered into dense formations.”
Some Allies Are Better Than Others
Despite Cavoli’s and Wallander’s blanket praise for NATO’s response to Ukraine’s calls for assistance, Rogers noted that some allies have been more engaged than others.“The awakening in Germany that so many thought was coming has yet to materialize, and in France, the denial runs even deeper,” he said. “France has not met the minimum levels of NATO defense spending, and it ranks in the bottom of nations sending military assistance to Ukraine. President Macron’s recent knee-bending before President Xi has been shameful.”
Rogers said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “has finally opened Europe’s eyes to the threats they face.”
“Europe needs to learn the lessons of Nordstream 2 and not become dependent on adversaries, especially those that commit genocide and look to change international borders through force,” he said.
Rogers praised Poland, Romania, Finland, and “the Balts” for “stepping up to meet that threat” when “others are not.”
“I think it is time for U.S. forces in Europe to move further east into the countries that are investing more heavily into their own security,” he said.
“Poland, Romania, and the Baltics [Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia] truly understand the threat from Putin. Unlike others, they’ve invested in their own defense and are our real partners in our collective security. It’s also where our troops will be most useful and have the largest impact on deterrence.”
The Biden administration’s actions in backing Ukraine are not only being watched and measured in Moscow by Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said, but in Beijing by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
“The Biden administration’s continued reluctance and indecision only sends the wrong message,” Rogers said. “Xi is watching how America responds to this conflict very closely. If America loses its resolve in the Ukraine, it sends a clear message that we won’t be there to defend Taiwan.
“That is not the message we should be sending to the CCP.”
