As the United States sends 18 155mm shells and 40,000 artillery shells to Ukraine as part of new security assistance announced by President Joe Biden’s government this week, even that amount could be spent in a matter of days. increasing the prospect of depletion of Ukrainian forces. ammunition, the official said. During some of the previous heavy fighting, Ukrainian forces fired up to thousands of artillery shells in a given day, the official said. From now on, the United States believes that Russia’s possible strategy is to move weapons and troops to eastern Ukraine from their current positions just north, and then to encircle and cut off Ukrainian forces there, the official said. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milli are making daily phone calls to their counterparts in the region to encourage them to send more weapons and supplies to Ukraine as soon as possible. Earlier this week, the Pentagon hosted the CEOs of the eight largest military contractors to figure out how to arm Ukraine faster. The roundtable discussion, led by Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks, focused on the Pentagon’s goals of continuing to supply Ukraine with weapons while maintaining the readiness of US forces and supporting Allied defense.