What is the danger,
do you think, in the months ahead?
Given the first issue,
which is the seemingly relentless
drawdown of weapons from the U.S.
and other natal countries,
you know,
as this war continues
to draw down
on more and more
stockpiles and equipment.
Yeah, Paula,
that's one of the
big issues
that's confronting
the entire Western alliance,
because the defense industrial base,
as it's known
of all these countries,
the natal countries in Europe,
as well as the United States and Canada,
it's really not built
for this kind of war.
And that very fact has made
it really difficult
for the West to resupply Ukraine
Ukraine is using weapons
that are very high rate.
It's using ammunition,
of course, as part of this.
And then the other thing
that we're confronted
with is the barrels of the various
artillery pieces that are overheating
because of overuse.
So that's a major issue for
the Ukrainians
and for the West,
especially if the West wants to continue
to help the Ukrainians,
then help the Ukrainians
stop the Russians.
You know, Secretary of
State Antony Blinken spoke
to CNN's
Christiane Amanpour about the option
we were just talking
about the right of possibly
resuscitating Soviet era weapons systems.
I never thought I would hear this
after hearing for more than three decades
that the West wanted
these Eastern European countries
to modernize their military.
But I want you to listen to them now.
We'll talk on the back end
we're looking at
at every option to make sure that, again,
they get what they need
and what can be most effective for them.
Some of that does go to
Soviet era systems
that they've had in their inventory
for decades.
And, for example,
making sure that the
ammunition is there
for those for those systems.
So, Colonel,
does this strike you
as a good strategic option
or more of a sign
of desperation
that, you know,
there has been a study,
the most recent from the Center
for Strategic and International Studies
and found
that it would take years to replenish
these stocks,
given that, as you say,
the industrial
industrial military
complex is designed for peace
I mean, does
it strike
you as desperate or a creative idea?
Well, it's somewhat creative in the sense
that the Ukrainians,
of course, have had this Soviet
era weapon systems ever since they gained
they regained their independence in 1991.
So they're used to this,
they've been trained on this
and even if they've had a break
in service
between their initial military service
and their call up for this war,
they're still familiar with these
with these weapon systems.
So in that sense,
it makes sense to do that.
But on the other hand,
these systems are old.
They are not as effective
as their Western counterparts.
Especially the modern
Western counterparts.
And the Ukrainians
would be better served
if they could receive the Western systems
and they could be trained on them
so that's the big end.
But that is one of the key
things that
would need to happen in this case.
So I think it requires
a lot of creative solutions.
You know, using the old Soviet equipment
but also ramping up the training
for modern Western equipment to be used
by the Ukrainians themselves. Right.
So you look a two track approach
that you're talking about.
I'm going to lean on your expertize here,
because we all remember
at the start of this war
that Ukraine asked for that
no fly zone that they didn't get.
Now, you say it's now highly likely
that these new air
defense systems
that they get maybe could potentially
have a truly integrated
air and missile defense system in
place for Ukraine.
Do you think though, that
it will come soon enough?
Given everything you've seen
on the battlefield?
Yeah, that's
my biggest concern,
Paula, actually,
that they won't come soon enough.
So this requires
not only the logistical piece
to move forward,
but also the training piece
to move forward.
And we do understand that the U.S.
is working
in conjunction with the Ukrainians
and with NATO's partners,
especially Germany,
to train a much greater volume
of Ukrainians on Western systems.
So if that happens, I it can be done,
but it also requires the Ukrainians
to leave their country
and leave their fighting posts
in order to come in and get some training
and then come back.
So it's a
it's a bit of a tough haul, and it's
certainly very concerning.
And basically the clock is running out
in multiple directions.
And that's going to be
a really big
problem for the West,
for the Ukrainians and
really for the world.