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US struggling to trace weapons sent to Ukraine: Pentagon

Tuesday, 28 February 2023 8:38 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 28 February 2023 8:38 PM ]

Kiev forces prepare US-supplied M777 howitzer to fire at Russian positions in Kharkiv, Ukraine, July 14, 2022. (File photo)

The United States has been struggling to keep track of the weapons it is providing to Ukrainian troops, according to a classified Pentagon report.

Speaking at a hearing of the US House Armed Services Committee in Washington on Tuesday, Pentagon Inspector General Robert Storch said allocated $113 billion in aid to Ukraine since the war started in February last year.

Storch said that 60 percent of the weapons and munitions sent to Ukraine had been handed over to the Kiev forces.

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Republican Rep. Mike Johnson stated that a report from Storch’s office last October found that the Pentagon was unable to carry out monitoring of weapons deliveries to Ukraine in line with its own policies.

Storch responded by saying the report Johnson had referred to was classified. However, he did admit that the report was “accurate” in acknowledging “challenges” faced by the Pentagon in keeping track of the weapons in Ukraine. According to the 1996 Arms Export Control Act, Pentagon is required to keep track of the military aid sent to Ukraine.

During Tuesday's hearing, Storch -- who is tasked with ensuring that US aid to Kiev is accounted for and not lost to waste, fraud, or abuse -- would not confirm or deny under oath whether the Pentagon was complying with the Arms Export Control Act.

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According to data gathered by German market research firm Statista on US arms exports, the United States has sent more military aid to Kiev forces to fight Russia than it spent annually to fight its own war in Afghanistan.

Statista journalist Martin Armstrong pointed to the size of US military aid o Kiev forces. “When calculating the average annual costs of previous wars in which the United States has been involved, the true magnitude of the country’s Ukraine aid expenditure can be seen.”