A staggering $1 billion worth of weapons, paid for by American taxpayers, has gone “missing” in Ukraine, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has admitted.
The bombshell admission was revealed in a report from the DOD Inspector General (IG).
According to an internal audit released by the DOD IG, Pentagon officials admitted that they had “lost track” of the weapons after they arrived in Ukraine.
The DOD is supposed to use special “enhanced end-use monitoring techniques” to keep track of the weapons.
These monitoring techniques are intended to “safeguard” key weapons such as smaller, high-tech weaponry provided to Ukraine.
The Pentagon needs to closely monitor such weapons as they are likely targets for theft and could end up in the hands of adversaries.
The audit says these monitoring procedures are not properly being followed in Ukraine, however.
Democrat President Joe Biden’s administration claims the protocols are not being followed due to staffing shortages, poor internal logistics, and more.
The report notes that, as of June 2023, Ukraine has received $1.7 billion in enhanced end-use monitoring designated weapons, all paid for by U.S. taxpayers.
However, the audit found that $1 billion of the $1.7B — or 59% — in weapons