**Ukraine Withdraws 24,000 Mortar Shells Due to Malfunction**
The Ukrainian government has decided to withdraw about 24,000 mortar shells from service due to suspected defects. The decision was made by Strategic Industries Minister Herman Smetanin on November 28.
According to Smetanin, the defective shells constitute less than 1% of Ukraine’s total defense production in 2024. The mortar shells were produced domestically and were used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
**Investigation Launched**
The withdrawal of the mortar shells follows an investigation by Ukraine’s Defense Ministry into the causes of abnormal malfunctioning of the 120 mm shells. The ministry had suspended the use of the ammunition and seized the shells for further investigation.
A workgroup was set up to investigate the matter, and it concluded that several product components operated abnormally, leading to poor quality ammunitions. Smetanin added that recent reports of mine malfunctions have prompted the re-testing of the latest batches of manufactured arms.
**Manufacturing Plant Under Scrutiny**
The manufacturing plant responsible for producing the defective shells has come under scrutiny. One of the plants received a complaint about 120 mm shells from the Logistics Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces on November 20, according to Smetanin.
**Quality Control Issues**
The situation has highlighted quality control issues within Ukraine’s defense sector. Fedir Venislavskyi, a member of the parliament‘s Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence, said that lower temperatures and high humidity were identified as the main causes of the defects.
Artillery and mortar shells are crucial in the war against Russia, which has better-stocked forces. The supply of the defective shells was part of an effort to reduce Ukraine’s dependence on foreign supplies by purchasing ammunition from a domestic producer.
**Investigation Finds Inadequate Quality Control**
An investigation into the matter found that the Defense Ministry’s quality control process was inadequate. Warnings raised by some officials regarding the plant’s ability to produce detonators for the shells “disappeared” during the process, and military officials failed to report initial problems with the shells.
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