Posted on 03/29/2023 10:34:11 PM PDT by familyop
Oversight mechanisms for American aid to Ukraine are effectively preventing fraud and diversion, according to Congressional testimony from those involved.
Nicole Angarella, the acting deputy inspector general for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), said there is no evidence that direct assistance to embattled Kyiv has been fraudulently or otherwise diverted from its intended purposes.
“I want to be clear that providing timely, impactful, and independent oversight of USAID’s Ukraine response is my office’s top priority,” Angarella said.
“From our substantiated work that we’ve done thus far, we have not identified any instances of fraud or misuse with respect to the direct budget support.”
Angarella added that her office’s “substantive oversight mechanism” had not resulted in any serious criminal findings regarding the use of U.S. aid to Ukraine, but had solicited huge increases in the number of suspected frauds reported.
That likely means people are becoming increasingly aware of the appropriate channels through which to report suspicious activity, Angarella said.
Likewise, Defense Department Inspector General Robert Storch said the Pentagon was working to ensure accountability for all security aid from its point of origin in the United States through arrival on the front lines in Ukraine.
“It’s my understanding that of the $113 billion that the Congress has appropriated to date for Ukrainian assistance, over $62 billion … has gone to security assistance,” Storch said.
“Based on our completed work, we have not substantiated any instances of diversion of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine.”
Most American Aid Goes to US Workers
Ensuring accountability in the U.S. aid to Ukraine has been a top priority of lawmakers since Russia launched its attempted conquest more than a year ago.
To that end, Committee Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said that it was “imperative” that U.S. taxpayers understand how robust oversight mechanisms were ensuring the nation’s aid was “used as intended.”
“Accountability will be paramount to continued assistance to Ukraine,” McCaul said.
For that purpose, McCaul also made clear that the majority of U.S. aid for Ukraine actually goes directly to the American servicemembers and workers responsible for creating and delivering the required materials.
Sixty percent of aid, McCaul said, went “to American troops, American workers, and modernizing American stockpiles.”
“In fact,” McCaul added, “only 20 percent [of U.S. aid] is going directly to the Ukrainian government in the form of direct budgetary assistance.”
Vital to Stopping Russia
Continuing effective oversight of U.S. aid to Ukraine is vital to stopping the Russian war machine before it reaches NATO territory, McCaul said.
Further, McCaul tied the nation’s support to a larger struggle between the rules-based international order and a resurgent autocracy witnessed throughout the world.
“It’s been a year since Vladimir Putin launched his unprovoked war of aggression in Ukraine,” McCaul said.
“I supported U.S. assistance because a victory by Putin in Ukraine would further embolden America’s adversaries from Xi in Beijing to the Ayatollah in Tehran, to Kim Jong-un in North Korea.”
Ranking Member Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) similarly said that American aid to Ukraine was part of a wider struggle to defend free societies from resurgent authoritarianism, and was in the national interest of the United States.
“Congress and the American people will continue to stand with the brave Ukrainians who are defending their rights and freedom,” Meeks said.
“It is in our national interest to provide … support to Ukraine so that it may win this war, which it will.”
Very likely “official” BS
Ping? From The Epoch Times. This got some quick attention. ;)
Well, that settles it. BS!
I do not believe a word this POS Biden shill has said. If the funds have gone to US personnel and companies, why is it that we have depleted much of our ammunition - 105mm artillary - and other essential supplies. What have they done with that money? My suspicion, this is another Democrat money laundering scheme.
Of course there’s been no fraud. $138 billion down a rat hole. “I stand with Ukraine!’’
Yeah. You’re standing with Ukraine all the while getting your pocket picked.
WHEW. I was kinda worried the most corrupt nation in Europe would ‘misappropriate’ free money from the most corrupt president in history.
I would think that depends on one’s definition of “fraud” and “misuse”.
The fox is reporting no missing hens from the hen house. Send more hens.
Does this kind of require us to know what the word (is) is?
“Does this kind of require us to know what the word (is) is?”
___
My point exactly!
I'll take Lying, Grifting Democrat/RINO/leftist/WEF scumbag Money Laundering Operations for $1,000,000, Alex. . .
👍👍👍👍👍
US military aid is mostly drawn from existing US military inventories. That would not be easy to redirect or misuse, given as the bulk of the high value systems are not the sort of thing that would be easy to find other buyers for. Masses of 155mm shells for instance, or HIMARS rockets.
To refresh military inventories, backfilling drawdown of Ukraine-bound equipment (not all of these transfers require backfill) - it is a matter of ordinary Pentagon contracts. These may well have inherent corruption, or at least “structural inefficiencies”, but that’s an everyday thing in Pentagon purchasing.
There are some foreign contracts paid for by the Pentagon for weapons or materials for delivery to Ukraine. These include for instance payments to Eastern European arms manufacturers for Soviet-type artillery ammo. There certainly could be hanky panky here. The Bulgarians for instance don’t have a good reputation. But this too is the lookout of the Pentagon.
The lesser part of US aid - financial aid to the Ukrainian government or international NGOs - or “humanitarian” commodity aid - that’s where the real trouble would likely be. Finding problems here would require auditing the Ukrainian government and all those NGOs. That’s not going to be done on the US government side. The Euros have a bigger problem here as much more of their aid is in these categories.
Pretty soon they’ll all go to prison for misinformation like this.
“Sixty percent of aid, McCaul said, went “to American troops,”
60% of 180 billion dollars? Just how many troops and workers do we have over there?
Are we paying each of them 5 million dollars reparations as part of this?
10% for the big guy, leaves 30% of 180 billion. Where did that go?
Lots of stupid people on this page site today.
One - re 105 mm artillery. Where is the U.S. .military using all these howitzers today, Afghanistan, Iran, So. Korea? Maybe a few at US military bases in Syria, Iraq, etc. but nothing of any major proportions.
The last time I saw a 105 in action was at a 7th ARVN firebase on the Ham Leuang River in So. Vietnam,in Nov. 1970. It was a WW2 production model
I’m sure my son-in-law saw them in Desert Storm before he was wounded and my son saw them in Op. Iraqi Freedom. They were used in Afghanistan because they are effective against enemies in mountains but there has been little use for them against Antifa in the US.
I wonder if the critics of US aid to Ukraine are aware of MDTs, Military Delivery Teams, a concept I first came across in Cambodia during the war there. Teams followed supplies from the U.S. to there destinations from warehouses to field units to make sure they weren’t stolen for any bookmarklet.
They were significantly successful in these efforts. There is always some theft in any war or its aftermath.
The congressman ‘s words sound realistic and with the use of computers to keep track of in inventory to its destination, the chances of any major theft has even greatly reduced. No program is foolproof but they have improved significantly over the decades.
Pure Whitewash. They can’t even trace a lot of the money and weapons that have gone to Ukraine. Ukraine BTW, has long been listed as THE most corrupt country in Europe bar none.
And you really believe there isn’t all sorts of corruption with this much money flowing in? Puhleaze.
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