US military aid to Ukraine now mistakenly overestimated by $8.2 billion after latest check
The Pentagon discovered additional accounting errors of $2 billion in its calculations regarding ammunition, missiles and other equipment provided to Ukraine, reported Reuters with reference to the report of the United States government.
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The US Department of Defense has faced problems accurately valuing defense items sent to Ukraine due to unclear accounting definitions, the document says.
In 2023, the Pentagon said staff used "replacement value" instead of "depreciated value" to calculate the price of weapons. The $6.2 billion error created an opportunity to send additional assistance to Kyiv.
As a result of the discovery of new errors, the amount of incorrectly assessed materials has increased to $8.2 billion. Thus, an additional $2 billion worth of weapons may be sent to Ukraine to cover the amount of aid approved by the administration of US President Joe Biden, reports Reuters.
The US Government Accountability Office noted that the unclear definition of value in the Foreign Assistance Act and the lack of specific guidance on valuation led to inconsistencies in reporting on the value of military aid. The report gives the example that 10 vehicles were valued at $7 million, while the accompanying documentation shows that they should have been valued at zero, i.e. at their residual value.
The agency recommended that Congress clarify the definition of value in the context of defense goods under the Presidential Drawdown Authority. In addition, the Government Accountability Office provided a number of recommendations to the Pentagon to update the relevant instructions.
On May 18, 2023, it was reported that the Pentagon's accounting department overestimated military aid to Ukraine by approximately $3 billion.
On June 21, the Pentagon announced that it had overestimated the military aid provided to the Armed Forces of Ukraine by $6.2 billion. The department said that the accounting error discovered in May turned out to be more significant than previously thought.
