After over eight months of pouring tens of billions of dollars worth of weapons into Ukraine, the Biden administration has announced some steps it will take toward oversight of the military aid.
The State Department announced the plan on October 27. It focuses on keeping powerful portable weapons like Javelin anti-tank missiles and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles off the black market. Responsible Statecraft reported that experts are warning the plan has gaps and doesn’t address the issue of smaller arms.
The State Department said in order to achieve its oversight goals, the US will bolster the ability of Ukraine and other regional countries “to account for and safeguard their arms and ammunition,” strengthen borders, and bolster security agencies to “deter, detect, and interdict illicit trafficking of certain advanced conventional weapons.”
Another aspect of the effort is in-person inspections of US weapons inside Ukraine that are being conducted by the US military. The Pentagon revealed on Monday that its personnel has begun conducting these inspections inside the country, marking the first official confirmation of a US military presence on the ground in Ukraine since Russia invaded on February 24.
The Pentagon did not provide much detail on where the inspections are taking place but said they are being conducted by personnel based at the US Embassy in Kyiv. Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder told reporters on Tuesday that there are US Marines at the embassy conducting guard duties on top of the weapons inspectors.
Ryder also said that the inspectors will not be near the “front lines.” According to media reports, US special operations forces and CIA operatives are also on the ground in Ukraine, but the covert operations have not been officially confirmed by Washington. President Biden had repeatedly said he wouldn’t send troops into Ukraine, which he said before Russia’s invasion could spark a “world war.”
Up to this point, there has been virtually no oversight of the billions in weapons being sent to Ukraine. Finnish law enforcement said earlier this week that they have seen weapons sent to Ukraine ending up in criminal hands in Finland and other countries in the region, including Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands. An official from Finland’s National Bureau of Investigation said they’re “going to be dealing with these arms for decades and pay the price here.”
As I recall, Rand Paul introduced a amendment to the original legislation that would have provided oversight for the billions of dollars in military equipment going to Ukraine. He was attacked and derided by deep state mouthpieces for his efforts. The well funded Ukrainian lobby, opposed oversight. Big surprise.
The fact that no oversight provision was in the legislation is clear evidence of incompetence, corruption or both. I’m going with both on this one.
So, now that the cat’s out of the bag and after months of reports that US supplied equipment was showing up on the black market, our brilliant overseers in DC are checking on the whereabouts of that equipment. Good luck with that.
Of course, the swamp creatures will not be held to account for another fiasco. They never are. Things never change in DC. And they have bipartisan cover for their malfeasance.
“Oversight” seems highly unlikely when those proposing the plan cannot see the hand in front of their faces….
Yes ,they are sending American soldiers to man the killing machines… Go figure…
Something about horses and barn doors, ……
“don’t let the barn door hit your horse in the ass”?
US always wakes up late in the game…!
It’s too little too late…!
Apparently the mic lobby needs a bigger cut.
Us peons can’t expect the High and Mighty to have oversight. Our job is to keep our mouths shut and write a check when we are told to do so.
The only oversight is the MIC ringing up sales. Cha-Ching!!!