According to news agency Reuters, the United States and other Western nations have provided Ukraine with military aid worth millions of dollars to assist in its ongoing conflict with Russia, which started when Moscow initiated a “special military” operation on February 24 last year.
However, the Pentagon made an error in its estimation of the value of the ammunition, missiles, and other equipment it sent to Ukraine, as reported by a Senate aide and a defense official on Thursday.
Based on information from sources, the report states that officials from the Pentagon and State Department informed congressional staff members that the revised accounting revealed an error-free assessment, freeing up $3 billion worth of weapons. This means that Ukraine could potentially receive more weapons from existing stocks to bolster its defense against Russian forces.
A senior defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, stated that “inconsistencies in how we value the equipment that we’ve given” to Ukraine were discovered. The report also mentions that Congress is being informed about the accounting adjustment.
The defense official mentioned that the amount of overestimated weaponry could exceed $3 billion, as the Pentagon conducts a detailed investigation. It was revealed that the Pentagon used replacement cost to value the aid’s weaponry, rather than the value of the weaponry at the time of purchase and depreciation.
US Senator Roger Wicker, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, criticized the Department of Defense’s change in evaluating the costs of arms sent to Ukraine, stating that it is a significant mistake that underestimates future needs for European allies. He further described it as an attempt at deception that undermines the goal of supporting Ukraine in its fight against Putin.
In recent times, the US has provided precision weapons and announced a new $1.2 billion security assistance package to Ukraine, focusing on boosting the country’s air defenses and providing additional artillery ammunition. The US Defense Department emphasized its commitment to Ukraine’s defense by delivering critical near-term capabilities and building the capacity of Ukraine’s armed forces to deter Russian aggression.
The US has sent various military equipment to Ukraine, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers, Javelin anti-tank weapons, a Patriot surface-to-air missile system, and more. The services, such as the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, have been using the current replacement cost of the items in their evaluations.
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