Frontline Ukrainian soldiers say they are running low on ammo and can only fire a few rounds with their most effective guns

• A Ukrainian soldier in Bakhmut said they were low on ammunition and had to limit their firing.
• "We haven't got enough ammunition for our weapon," he said, a sentiment others echoed.

A Ukrainian fighting near the front lines in Bakhmut said he and his fellow troops were running low on ammunition, and that they had to limit the using of their rocket launchers as a result.

The soldier, identified as Volodymyr, spoke to the BBC about fighting in the eastern Ukrainian city.

He said that his unit can now only fire a few barrels of their BM-21 Grad rocket launcher at a time, compared to a year ago when they could fire all 40 of the weapon's barrels at once.

"We haven't got enough ammunition for our weapon," he told the BBC.

Volodymyr added that Ukraine's own supplies of ammunition for the launcher had run out, so they were using ones sourced from the Czech Republic, Romania, and Pakistan. The ones from Pakistan were not "good quality," he said.

His unit, which is part of the 17th Tank Battalion, is giving support to Ukrainian troops closer to the front line, and he said he was angry that he couldn't do more to protect his fellow troops.

"We could have provided more support to our guys who are dying there," he said.

The fighting in Bakhmut is considered the bloodiest since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.

Russian troops have been slowly pushing back Ukraine's troops for months, in what commanders on both sides have called a "meat grinder."

Volodymyr told the BBC that he worried the ammunition shortages could get worse as the war goes on. "We are also worried our Western allies are getting tired of helping us," he said.

Another Ukrainian soldier in the area told the BBC that his men had to ration rounds on their L119 light artillery gun.

"We've got enough people for the moment. But we need ammunition. Ammunition is the most important," he said.

Ukraine has repeatedly warned that it is running low on ammunition, and has urged its allies to provide more.

On Monday, Ukraine's foreign minister told a meeting of EU foreign ministers that "Ukraine needs desperately the ammunition to stand against the Russian attacks, and also to organize the counterattack," according to his Estonian counterpart.

NATO's chief, Jens Stoltenberg, also gave a warning in February that Ukraine was using ammunition faster than its allies could produce it.

And Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign affairs head, said the same month that the war would soon be over unless Ukraine could get more.

This week Borrell said that the EU was close to a deal to buy more ammunition for Ukraine.

Some EU countries have also proposed ramping up arms production.