The United States cannot track more than $1 billion in weapons and other military equipment that it provided to Ukraine, according to a Pentagon audit.
Some 59 percent of $1.7 billion in defense gear remains “delinquent,” according to a report by the Pentagon’s inspector general.
That gear was subject to enhanced end-use monitoring (EEUM), which requires additional layers of verification and protections for certain items including Stinger and Tomahawk missiles, uncrewed aircraft systems, and small-diameter bombs.
The audit says that the Pentagon “did not maintain an accurate inventory” of items and failed to update key databases in a timely manner.
Several confounding variables—including a limited number of personnel, restricted movement in Ukraine, and a lack of controls to validate key data—were to blame, the report said.
Importantly, however, the report could not verify whether the delinquent systems were illicitly diverted from their intended endpoint or merely not listed in the correct databases.
“It was beyond the scope of our evaluation to determine whether there has been diversion of such assistance,” the report said.
Biden Aid to Ukraine Under Fire
The Biden administration has been keen to insist that there is no evidence the untracked weapons have been stolen or otherwise diverted from their intended purpose.“The fact is, we observed the Ukrainians employing these capabilities on the battlefield. We’re seeing them use them effectively.”
Any reports to the contrary, Gen. Ryder said, were Russian disinformation.
Regardless of the Pentagon’s confidence in the matter, the audit undermines two years of assurances from the Biden administration that it was employing rigorous monitoring capable of preventing U.S. military aid to Ukraine from being misused. That could hurt the administration’s attempts to push billions more dollars worth of weaponry into the East European nation.
The supplemental request is currently stalled in Congress, where Democratic and Republican lawmakers disagree on how to best balance funding priorities to Ukraine, Israel, and the United States’ own southern border.
The new report on oversight in Ukraine likewise says that the Pentagon failed to even maintain accurate serial-numbers for some defense articles in Ukraine as required by U.S. policy.
Defense Department officials told auditors they expected to have systems for improved oversight in place by next year.