https://sputnikglobe.com/20230602/us-reportedly-eying-japanese-tnt-for-ukraine-bound-shells-amid-global-shortages----1110853117.html
US Reportedly Eying Japanese TNT for Ukraine-Bound Shells Amid Global Shortages
US Reportedly Eying Japanese TNT for Ukraine-Bound Shells Amid Global Shortages
Sputnik International
Washington and its NATO allies go ahead with weapon supplies to Kiev despite Russia’s repeated warnings that such deliveries add to prolonging the conflict in Ukraine.
2023-06-02T07:04+0000
2023-06-02T07:04+0000
2023-06-02T08:03+0000
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The Biden administration is reportedly seeking to secure supplies of TNT in Japan for US-made 155mm artillery shells as part of the White House’s efforts to provide Kiev with more ammunition, amid reports of its much-anticipated counteroffensive against Russian forces who continue their special military operation in Ukraine.Reuters reported, quoting unnamed sources, as saying that "there is a way for the United States to buy explosives from Japan.” No other media has reported on this so far.One of the sources reportedly claimed that Tokyo, which hosted US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin earlier this week, had told Washington that it would allow the sale of industrial TNT because the explosive is not a military-use-only product.Japan's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Economy as well as the Japanese Defense Ministry's Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency declined to elaborate on the matter.The US State Department only said that Washington was working with allies and partners "to provide Ukraine with the support it needs", and that Japan "has demonstrated leadership in supporting Ukraine's defense."After the news outlet contacted 22 explosives makers listed on the Japan Explosives Industry Association's website, the only company that responded was a Hiroshima-based firm Chugoku Kayaku, which said that they “have not received any direct inquiry from the US government or US military.”The US media outlet’s report comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to Japan during the Hiroshima G7 summit last month, when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to provide Kiev with jeeps and trucks.The US and its allies boosted their military aid to Kiev shortly after Russia began its special military operation in Ukraine. In the latest development, the Pentagon unveiled a massive new aid package for Ukraine worth $300 million that includes scores of ammunition types, from rifles to drone weapons to air defense missiles.Moscow has repeatedly warned countries who send weapons to Ukraine that it sees these military shipments as legitimate targets. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, stressed that such deliveries are tantamount to a direct involvement in the Ukraine conflict.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20230202/mission-impossible-why-nato-is-failing-to-ukrainize-south-korea--japan-1106895673.html
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US Reportedly Eying Japanese TNT for Ukraine-Bound Shells Amid Global Shortages
07:04 GMT 02.06.2023 (Updated: 08:03 GMT 02.06.2023) Washington and its NATO allies are continuing to supply weapons to Kiev despite Russia’s repeated warnings that such deliveries add to prolonging the conflict in Ukraine.
The Biden administration is reportedly seeking to secure supplies of TNT in Japan for US-made 155mm artillery shells as part of the White House’s efforts to provide Kiev with more ammunition, amid reports of its much-anticipated counteroffensive against Russian forces who continue their special military operation in Ukraine.
Reuters reported, quoting unnamed sources, as saying that "there is a way for the United States to buy explosives from Japan.” No other media has reported on this so far.
One of the sources reportedly claimed that Tokyo, which hosted US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin earlier this week, had told Washington that it would allow the sale of industrial TNT because the explosive is not a military-use-only product.
According to the insider, the US wants to plug a Japanese company into a TNT supply chain to deliver explosives to US army-owned munitions plants that would pack them into 155mm shell cases.
Japan's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Economy as well as the Japanese Defense Ministry's Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency declined to elaborate on the matter.
2 February 2023, 04:38 GMT
The US State Department only said that Washington was working with allies and partners "to provide Ukraine with the support it needs", and that Japan "has demonstrated leadership in supporting Ukraine's defense."
After the news outlet contacted 22 explosives makers listed on the Japan Explosives Industry Association's website, the only company that responded was a Hiroshima-based firm Chugoku Kayaku, which said that they “have not received any direct inquiry from the US government or US military.”
The Japanese constitution forbids the country from exporting lethal items to countries involved in conflicts. At the same time, export restrictions for dual-use products or equipment sold commercially are less tough than for items with a purely military purpose. This limits Tokyo's current offerings to Kiev to kit such as flak jackets, helmets and food rations.
The US media outlet’s report comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's visit to Japan during the Hiroshima G7 summit last month, when Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to provide Kiev with jeeps and trucks.
Tsuneo Watanabe, a senior fellow at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, told the outlet in this regard that "the fact that Japan has decided to give trucks to Ukraine shows that things are changing. However, there doesn't yet appear to be any political consensus around the issue of sending lethal aid."
The US and its allies boosted their military aid to Kiev shortly after Russia began its special military operation in Ukraine. In the latest development, the Pentagon unveiled
a massive new aid package for Ukraine worth
$300 million that includes scores of ammunition types, from rifles to drone weapons to air defense missiles.
Moscow has repeatedly warned countries who send weapons to Ukraine that it sees these military shipments as legitimate targets. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, for his part, stressed that such deliveries are tantamount to a direct involvement in the Ukraine conflict.
