WASHINGTON – The U.S. military was required to monitor more than $1 billion in weapons sent to Ukraine between February and June of last year, according to a new Pentagon Inspector General report released Thursday. could not be traced.
The news comes as Congress once again prepares to debate continued aid to the war-torn country as the second anniversary of the Russian invasion approaches.
The IG's report analyzed the Department of Defense's “enhanced end-use monitoring'' (EEUM) program, which is required for certain types of small arms that are most likely to be intercepted and routed to the black market.
“These EEUM-designated defense articles included Javelin missiles, Javelins; [launch units]the Stinger Missile, the Stinger Gripstock, and the Lethal Small Air Missile System Switchblade,” the report states.
The U.S. has spent more than $45 billion in military aid to Ukraine since 2021, but the report only takes into account EEUM-designated weapons sent by the U.S. and international partners, whose value was estimated during the study period. The total amount reached approximately $1.7 billion.
“nevertheless [American] As of June 2, 2023, Ukrainian military personnel have conducted serial number inventories worth more than $1.05 billion out of a total value of $1.699 billion – 59[%] “The total amount of defense articles designated for EEUM continues to be in arrears,” the report said.
This is just a fraction of the tens of billions worth of arms and military equipment Kiev has received since the Russian invasion began on February 24, 2022, but it promotes accountability for aid. This is the first glimpse of American participation in Washington's efforts to do so.
The news comes as Congress reconvenes this week to craft a supplemental funding bill that would provide additional funding for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and southern border security. Without this bill, the United States would lack the funds to pay for further aid to Kiev.
House Republicans have expressed concerns about continuing aid to Ukraine, and several, including far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), have raised concerns about keeping weapons in the right hands. It suggests that there is.
“We sent Ukraine billions of dollars in cash and billions more in arms and ammunition,” Taylor Greene posted on X on Thursday, linking to the report. “The kicker? I have no idea where this all went! But Chairman Johnson wants to link securing America's borders with more aid to Ukraine. I'm a firm NO!! #AmericaFirst.”
But the Pentagon IG found no reason to believe that the untracked equipment ended up on the black market, said Pentagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters.
“There is still no credible evidence that advanced conventional weapons provided by the United States were illegally diverted from Ukraine,” Ryder said. “We're seeing some examples of Russia continuing to spread disinformation to the contrary, but we're actually seeing Ukrainians using these capabilities on the battlefield.” [and] We see them using them effectively. ”
While that may be true, the watchdog was not actively looking for evidence that such weapons were in the wrong hands, the agency said.
“It was beyond the scope of our assessment to analyze whether there was any such diversion of aid,” the report said.
Still, Ryder's claims that Moscow is spreading false rumors about corruption follow a trend in the Kremlin's efforts to spread lies about Kiev in order to influence U.S. opinion on continuing aid. There is.
The Pentagon has since stationed personnel in Ukraine, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) “continues to investigate possible criminal conduct related to U.S. security assistance to Ukraine,” according to the report. That's what it means.
To improve audits, the agency made five recommendations to the Department of Defense.[ing] It is working with the State Department to implement “inventory procedures” and “improve visibility into third-party transfers” of EEUM-designated equipment prior to delivery.
