UK Accelerates AS-90 Howitzer Deliveries to Ukraine

The UK announced on its gov.uk website on Thursday that it was on course to exceed the 12 AS-90 155 mm self-propelled howitzers it will send in military aid to Ukraine. In July 2024, the newly elected UK government initially pledged 10 more AS-90s along with spares and maintenance support.

After a stockpile review by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) the number of guns was initially increased to 12 and yesterday announced a new total of 16. It says that 10 of the artillery guns have already been delivered to Ukraine, with a further six to follow in the next few weeks.

The statement added “Artillery has played a vital role in providing cover for Ukrainian troops and destroying key Russian targets,” reads the statement.

The AS-90, known officially as Gun Equipment 155 mm L131, is a lightly armored self-propelled howitzer as good as anything Ukrainian forces have in their inventory. It can fire all types of NATO standard 155 mm shells up to 24.7 kilometers (15.3 miles) if fitted with the 39-caliber long barrel and 30 kilometers (19 miles) with a 52-caliber long barrel using standard propelling charges. It can fire three round 10 second bursts or intense rates of six per minute for three minutes or sustained fire of two rounds per minute for 60 minutes.

In addition to the artillery deliveries, the UK announcement restated its commitment to providing £3 billion ($4.3 billion) a year in military support for Ukraine until at least 2030/31 or for “as long as it takes.”

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The statement also announced the creation of a joint MoD and Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) unit, led by the UK’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Defence Secretary John Healey, intended combine military, technical and political expertise in an innovative whole-of-government approach in the country’s support to Ukraine.

Also on Thursday, the UK announced that it was imposing new sanctions against five named Russian vessels and two associated entities involved in the shipping of Russian liquefied-natural-gas (LNG), including from Russia’s flagship Arctic LNG 2 project.

The sanctioned vessels were named as: the Pioneer, the Asya Energy, the Nova Energy, the North Sky, the SCF La Perouse.

The two entities being sanctioned are associated with the vessels: Ocean Speedstar Solutions OPC, which operates and manages the Pioneer and the Asya Energy, along with White Fox Ship Management, the operator and manager of North Sky.

The statement says LNG is an important source of funding for Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine and is planning to expand its revenues from 8% to 20% of the global LNG market share.