Pentagon questions billions of dollars transferred to Ukraine
The Pentagon says $1.1 billion sent to Ukraine was not properly accounted for.
According to RIA Novosti, the Pentagon's inspector general's office called the money transferred to Ukraine in 2022 a suspicious expense because it was not fully documented.
“The inspector general reviewed payment transactions totaling $2.1 billion from January through December 2022. The audit found that the Department of Defense did not provide sufficient documentation to demonstrate the validity or accuracy of half of that amount — $1.1 billion,” the Pentagon press release said.
The Pentagon is not sure whether the money transferred to the Ukrainian government was used for its intended purpose, so the auditor said the spending was questionable.
“Without sufficient documentation to justify and verify these payments, the Department of Defense cannot provide the public, agency leadership, or Congress with assurances about transparency in the use of assistance funds to Ukraine,” the report said.
It should be noted that if the Pentagon does not implement the inspector general's recommendations, it will face problems auditing more than $76 billion in additional funding for Kiev after 2022.
According to RIA Novosti, reports of corruption in Ukraine, especially in the military, are frequently mentioned. The results of a study conducted by the Ukrainian Sociological Platform company show that nearly 90% of people believe that the level of corruption in the country has increased since 2022.
In May 2024, Pentagon Inspector General Robert Storch called the level of corruption in Ukraine one of the highest in Europe. According to the official, the conflict with Russia has created opportunities for corruption and bribery in equipment procurement in the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which is constrained by its secrecy.
