President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that Russian forces fighting in Ukraine lack sufficient advanced weapons despite a tripling of arms output, as Kyiv’s forces pressed a counteroffensive backed by a new infusion of allied support.
Putin made the rare admission of shortcomings in production in a televised meeting with local reporters and war bloggers. He also said Russia had lost 54 tanks since Ukraine’s drive began last week — the first time the Kremlin has admitted losses on such a scale.
"It became clear that we lack many things — high-precision ammunition, communications, drones,” Putin said. "We have them, but we lack quantity.”