US Faces Challenges in Ensuring Weapons Sent to Ukraine Are Not Misused

What You Need To Know!

• The United States has limited ability to ensure that the weapons sent to Ukraine are not being misused, according to Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.
• The Pentagon has acknowledged the difficulty of ensuring the final destination of over $30 billion in weapons aid delivered to Ukraine.
• The Pentagon coordinates with roughly a dozen officials at the embassy in Kyiv to conduct occasional on-site visits, but is unable to maintain monitoring outposts on the active battlefield due to the security environment.

The United States faces challenges in ensuring that the billions of dollars of weapons it has sent to Ukraine are not falling into the wrong hands, according to a recent report.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley told Congress that the U.S. has limited ability to ensure the weapons remain accounted for, and that maintaining a small contingent of non-combat personnel at the embassy in Kyiv means the U.S. mostly relies on Ukrainian soldiers to inspect aid closer to the front lines.

Milley said that while there are some means and mechanisms of ensuring accountability, it is not as rigorous as one might think.

ForksTalk Newswatch: General Mark Milley admits US oversight of weapons going to Ukraine is ‘not as rigorous as you might think’: The United States has a limited ability to ensure the billions in weapons sent to Ukraine stays out of the wrong hands,… https://t.co/pvw7sKtd8L pic.twitter.com/yvZ8wmVYtX— ForksTalk (@TalkForks) March 28, 2023

The Pentagon has acknowledged that it faces difficulties in guaranteeing the final destination of over $30 billion in weapons aid delivered to Ukraine so far. Ukrainian soldiers are responsible for inspecting aid at destinations closer to the front lines, and uploading photos of weapons to a secure software for confirmation.

The Pentagon coordinates with roughly a dozen officials at the embassy in Kyiv to conduct occasional on-site visits, but is unable to maintain monitoring outposts on the active battlefield due to the security environment. The U.S. has not identified any clear instances of illicit weapons diversion in Ukraine, but officials confirmed that they rely on Ukraine’s forces as a proxy for the integrity of U.S. assistance in Ukraine.

The joint oversight program with the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is ongoing, and focused on making sure that the Department of Defense (DOD) has the procedures in place to prevent fraud and misuse.

However, DOD has planned to transfer much of the responsibility for tracking weapons to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, allowing the troops to “conduct its own inspections”.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency’s more intensive verification requirements include documenting serial numbers for smaller items like Switchblade drones and night-vision equipment.

In conclusion, the U.S. faces significant challenges in ensuring the weapons sent to Ukraine are not falling into the wrong hands. While there are means of ensuring accountability, these are not as rigorous as might be hoped.

The U.S. relies heavily on Ukrainian soldiers to inspect aid closer to the front lines, and the joint oversight program with the State Department and USAID is ongoing. DOD is planning to transfer much of the responsibility for tracking weapons to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, but faces the challenge of documenting serial numbers for smaller items.

Source: dailycaller.com