According to Czech media reports, South Korea currently exports a large number of weapons to Ukraine through the Czech Republic, including self-propelled howitzers, 155 shells and anti-tank missiles, which are most urgently needed by the Ukrainian army.
Earlier, a number of American media reported that the United States had run out of stocks because of its military assistance to Ukraine. Especially since the beginning of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the United States alone has provided Ukraine with more than 600,000 rounds 155 mm artillery shells. On the other hand, the website of American Consumer News and Business Channel disclosed data, showing that the production capacity of American artillery shells is only about 30,000 rounds a year, which is supplied to American troops stationed abroad, American armed forces and American allies around the world. The ammunition consumption of the Ukrainian army has obviously exceeded the production capacity of the United States. The production capacity is not fully supported by the US military inventory, and now the US military's own artillery inventory is almost empty.
The United States, which has been implementing "investment and financial industrialization" for decades, obviously cannot increase the output of artillery shells several times or dozens of times at once in a short time. However, the Ukrainian army's demand for weapons is imminent, and we must find a solution immediately. South Korea, as the latest rising international arms export rookie in recent years, has a good production capacity of self-propelled artillery and supporting shells, and is one of the main allies of the United States. Objectively speaking, it is entirely possible to produce enough arms for export to the Ukrainian army according to the requirements of the United States. However, because the supply capacity of the United States itself can't keep up, it is quite unexpected for the United States to pull South Korea to provide arms.
Of course, South Korea does not give arms for free, but it still needs to collect money. Czech media reports mentioned that the purchase of Korean weapons may be paid by the new US aid to Ukraine bill. In other words, the United States took the money from the Ukrainian aid bill, let South Korea, which has production capacity, make arms and give them to the Czech Republic for Ukraine. It is complicated enough that the United States, South Korea, Czech Republic and Ukraine are involved in the whole supply chain at the same time.