The chaos reached such proportions that the Pentagon struggled to define what “delivered” meant, the news agency has reported
US officials could not tell whether tens of billions of dollars of weapons sent to Ukraine were actually delivered due to tracking systems failures, Reuters reported on Monday, citing sources.
During the final year of former President Joe Biden’s administration, key weapons shipments to Ukraine faced prolonged delays due to concerns about depleting US stockpiles and debates over whether the arms would trigger an escalation with Russia.
According to a Reuters investigation, the Pentagon’s “chaotic weapons-tracking system in which even the definition of ‘delivered’ differed among US military branches,” was a significant contributor to the overall confusion.
The system failure “skewed” Pentagon data, making it almost impossible to accurately pinpoint weapons in the shipping process, Reuters said, citing reports by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
Investigations by the Pentagon’s Inspector General and the GAO also found that the administration lacked clarity on the number of weapons delivered and the extent of shipment delays, according to Reuters.
An unnamed US official told the agency that the Pentagon has since updated internal manuals to clarify the term “delivered.” However, it is not clear how broadly the reform is being implemented, the article said.
The report found that shipment delays have persisted even after Congress broke a months-long deadlock on $60 billion in supplemental aid for Ukraine caused by Republican opposition.
As a result, by November, the US had fulfilled only half of its total 2024 commitment from its stockpiles to Kiev. Only 30% of armored vehicles promised by Washington had arrived by early December, Reuters sources claimed.
One US official expressed frustration over the pace of deliveries, suggesting that delays prevented Ukraine from making any substantial progress on the battlefield.
The official echoed the sentiments of numerous Ukrainian officials who have often blamed inadequate Western assistance for Kiev’s failure to stem Russia’s advances in Donbass and elsewhere.
In January 2024, the US Department of Defense Office of Inspector General released a report revealing that the Pentagon was unable to fully track over $1 billion worth of weapons sent to Ukraine. At the time, it said the Pentagon failed to “fully comply” with tracking requirements, adding that it was not possible to complete an inventory of everything sent to Kiev.
Moscow has consistently condemned Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, saying they will only prolong the conflict.
