Delays in promised Western military aid to Ukraine are costing lives, the defense minister says

By SAMYA KULLAB
Associated Press

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s defense minister says half of all promised Western military support fails to arrive on time. Rustan Umerov said Sunday that complicates the task of military planners and ultimately costs the lives of soldiers. Umerov was speaking at a forum in Kyiv. He said that each delayed aid shipment meant Ukrainian troop losses and underscored Russia’s superior military might. Umerov and the Ukrainian military’s commander earlier toured front-line combat posts amid a worsening ammunition shortage and dogged Russian attacks in the east. Russian shelling and rocket strikes continued to pummel Ukraine’s south and east. Russia and Ukraine also traded overnight drone attacks.