Pentagon accounting error overvalued weapon shipments to Ukraine by $3 billion
Mike Brest
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The Department of Defense overestimated the value of the military aid it provided to Ukraine over the course of the war by roughly $3 billion.
Specifically, the department had unintentionally been tallying the equipment provided to Ukraine as much higher than it should’ve been calculated because they had been using the figure not for the weapons the military was sending to Ukraine but the total of the more sophisticated weapon they were replacing it with, according to a senior defense official.
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The official used an example of the United States providing M777s to Ukraine from existing stockpiles while replacing them with a more expensive High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. The department had been using the cost of the HIMAR to calculate aid to Ukraine instead of what it actually provided, in this instance, the cheaper M777.
While the department is reviewing previous military aid packages to correct this error and any others, the reduced cost will likely amount to roughly $3 billion, which could ultimately prove to be a big boost to Ukraine, as it can use that difference to provide Ukraine with weapons it had previously not accounted for financially.
DOD uncovered the mistake in March, but it was reported publicly by Reuters on Thursday. The official warned that it will take a while for this to be sorted out entirely.
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-AL) and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) said in a statement Congress was first notified on Thursday, and they called that “extremely problematic, to say the least.”
“These funds could have been used for extra supplies and weapons for the upcoming counteroffensive instead of rationing funds to last for the remainder of the fiscal year,” they added. “The Biden administration must make up for this precious lost time by using these funds to provide Ukraine the [Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munition] and [Army Tactical Missile System] they need to fuel the counteroffensive and win the war.”
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The department has provided Ukraine with around $21 billion from its stockpiles through the 37 packages under the presidential drawdown authority, per Reuters. This move allows the military to take weapons from existing U.S. stockpiles for Ukraine instead of contracting defense companies to supply them with weapons.
DOD has a history of failing audits despite its increasing budget, which has exceeded $800 billion annually.