The Department of Defense Inspector General’s Office currently has more than 50 investigations into various aspects of the United State’s military support for Ukraine, though they have yet to substantiate any of the allegations.
The office, in multiple recently released reports, has revealed that the department has not met expectations for tracking and monitoring the billions of dollars of military aid the U.S. has provided to Ukraine.
“The DoD OIG currently has more than 50 ongoing investigative matters at different stages looking into allegations related to U.S. security assistance for Ukraine of the type that we typically see in conflict situations, such as procurement fraud, product substitution, theft, fraud, or corruption, and diversion or counterproliferation,” Robert Storch, the defense department’s inspector general, said in a statement to the Washington Examiner on Friday.
Storch did not provide any specific details of the cases or weapons allegedly involved in these cases and affirmed they have not substantiated wrongdoing in any of the investigations.
“However, based on our completed work to date, we have not substantiated any such allegations, though that may well change in the future,” he added.
The number of ongoing cases was first reported by Bloomberg.
Earlier this week, the IG’s office released separate reports on the department’s sustainment plan for Bradley, Stryker, and Abrams armored weapons systems and one on the sustainment strategies for the Patriot air defense systems. They concluded that the department had not developed or implemented a plan for the Ukrainians to ensure the weapons’ long-term usefulness.
Storch said in comments regarding the reports that, “While the DoD is currently working on developing such a plan, the lack of foresight in this matter is concerning, and should be rectified promptly.”
Pentagon deputy spokeswoman Sabrina Singh acknowledged on Thursday that the department is “certainly aware that we could be doing more,” when asked about the recent findings from the inspector general’s office.
“We have sent unprecedented security assistance to Ukraine at such a rapid rate. And Ukraine is right now, modernizing its military in the middle of a war,” she told reporters. “On top of that, we don’t have boots on the ground in Ukraine. We don’t have people out in the field being able to do sustain — sustainment and maintenance alongside the Ukrainians, so we do offer tele-support, but again, we’re not on the ground.”
The inspectors general from the Pentagon, State Department, and the U.S. Agency for International Development are leading the federal government’s oversight of approximately $113 billion in aid and funds marked for Ukraine.
The Biden administration has urged Congress for months to pass the president’s national security supplemental funding package, which includes more than $60 billion for Ukraine, since October. House Republicans have refused to do so, even torpedoing a bipartisan agreement that would’ve included the aid sought by the administration and supported by Democrats in exchange for concessions regarding U.S. southern border policies.
DoD last provided military aid to Ukraine in late December 2023.
Ukrainian forces have started to feel the lack of continuing U.S. military support as the two-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine commences this weekend. They withdrew from the eastern city of Avdiivka last week, and U.S. officials have warned that Russia, which is capitalizing on Ukraine’s shrinking military stockpiles, could start conquering more Ukrainian land.
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White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Thursday that Russian President Putin “clearly believes now is his best chance to bring Ukraine to its knees.”
The war had largely appeared to be in a stalemate until Ukraine started running short of military equipment, in particular ammunition, leading to new concerns about upcoming Russian success on the battlefield.