(MENAFN- UkrinForm) Canada has not yet agreed with its arms companies to increase the production of 155 mm caliber shells.
The Canadian public broadcaster CBC News reported this according to Ukrinform.
“In the fall of 2022, a little more than six months into the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, two of Canada's major ammunition manufacturers submitted proposals to the Liberal government to drastically increase production of artillery shells. Almost a year and a half later - with Canadian stockpiles drained by donations to dangerously low levels, and with Ukraine running out of ammo - a major agreement to ramp up production in this country still hasn't been signed”, the statement reads.
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The Liberal government's hesitation stems in part from the fact that boosting production of the NATO-standard 155 millimetre shells that both Canada and Ukraine need requires a federal investment of as much as $400 million in the factories where they're made.
According to CBC News sources, the government doubts that this investment will pay for itself due to the lack of long-term demand for artillery ammunition in the world. It says that if and when Ottawa decides to allocate the funds, it could be years before production increases.
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According to the Canadian Ministry of Defense, it will take three years to expand and modernize the production capacity of 155-mm shells.
CBC News notes that the federal government did invest about $5 million in modernizing production lines, but it did not bring any noticeable results.
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