SOME WESTERN WEAPONRY SENT TO UKRAINE WAS STOLEN BEFORE BEING RECOVERED LAST YEAR: REPORT

Sat 22 July 2023:

According to a study from the US defense department’s inspector general, some of the weaponry the US and its allies provided to Ukraine were taken by criminals, bogus volunteer fighters, and arms dealers, CNN reported.

The weapons were initially intended to support Ukraine’s military campaign against Russia.

The report, dated October 6, 2022 and titled “DoD’s Accountability of Equipment Provided to Ukraine,” details a number of criminal plots to steal weapons, ammunition, and battlefield equipment.

In June 2022, a Russian official at the helm of a criminal organization falsified documents in order to join a volunteer battalion, according to the report. The unnamed official then stole a grenade launcher, a machine gun, and over 1,000 rounds of ammunition. Ukrainian intelligence services derailed the scheme.

Ukrainian intelligence services also thwarted plots by arms dealers to resell equipment stolen from the southern front line, the report said. In another instance, intelligence services uncovered a group of Ukrainian criminals pretending to be aid workers in order to steal bulletproof vests.

The US defence department’s inability to visit the areas where the equipment was being used or stored significantly hindered their ability to monitor the situation effectively, the report argued. The US resumed on-site inspections of weapons given to Ukraine with tracking systems.

The report acknowledged that sending weapons to aid Ukraine’s war-effort entails the risk of potential diversion, especially if territory changes hands during the course of war.

The Republican Party has criticised the Biden administration for the purported lack of accountability about the billions of dollars of aid provided to Ukraine.

The report revealed instances when organisations deemed terrorist organisations by Russia and arms traffickers successfully stole weapons and equipment provided by the US and its allies.

For example, an organised crime group reportedly overseen by an unnamed Russian official used forged documents to steal weapons and ammunition. Similarly, Ukrainian criminals posed as aid workers to steal bulletproof vests.

The report only revealed the instances in which the Ukraine’s intelligence services purportedly intervened and disrupted the arms stealing plots.

Overall, while larger items like missiles and helicopters were easier to track through intelligence mechanisms, smaller items, such as night-vision devices, posed more significant monitoring challenges.

In February 2023, Colin Khal, the former under secretary of defense for policy, announced in a press conference that the U.S. was providing Ukraine with scanners and software to better track military equipment.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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