Bulgaria: The US and its NATO allies are reaching behind the former Iron Curtain in Bulgaria and other Eastern European countries in search of ammunition manufacturing facilities for Ukraine's Soviet-era weapons, according to a New York Times article.

According to the newspaper, despite sending Kiev modern weapons worth billions of dollars, governments in the Western Bloc are reportedly unable to produce Soviet-style artillery shells and other munitions, which the Ukrainian military still uses.

Therefore, they have turned to Bulgaria and other nations that were once part of the "Soviet orbit" for assistance in producing the weapons Ukraine needs to fight the Russian army.

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Because, as in the case of Bulgaria, the local population is largely pro-Russian, the search required secrecy to prevent "political fallout and Russian retaliation", the Times said.

Last summer it emerged that Sofia was selling weapons to Ukraine despite strong protests.

According to the report, a plant in Kostenets, Bulgaria, which has not produced 122-millimetre artillery shells since 1988, has added a new production line. A second government arms factory in the village of Sopot will also ramp up production, to supply the Ukrainian military.

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According to the report, brokers using funds provided by the US are looking for potential suppliers of Soviet-style shells among plants in Serbia, Romania and Bosnia and Herzegovina. To buy weapons for Ukraine, Luxembourg has entered into a contract with a Czech manufacturer of weapons.

While NATO members struggle to produce enough ammunition to replace the shells being fired every day in Ukraine, there is a rush for Soviet-era weapons.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned earlier this month that Kiev was consuming weapons at a rate "many times higher" than its Western allies.

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A secret task force has been set up by the UK government to track down Ukrainian suppliers of Soviet-style weapons. According to the Times, both the US and the UK have funded transactions involving brokers to help former Eastern Bloc makers and their governments conceal their involvement in the conflict.

In one instance a Romanian broker was paid by the British to buy artillery shells from a Pakistani arms manufacturer. Lastly, the munitions were never delivered by the Pakistani supplier.