Pentagon delayed $400 million in aid to Ukraine until last minute - US senator
Photo: US Senator Chris Coons (Getty Images)
The US Department of Defense announced the allocation of nearly $400 million in defense assistance to Ukraine one day before the deadline. Senators are outraged by the negligence, according to a statement by US Senator Chris Coons, The Washington Sun reports.
Pentagon delayed aid to Ukraine
Pentagon officials told Chris Coons, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, that 99.8% of funding for Ukraine had been obligated by the end of the fiscal year.
The senator said this was unacceptable.
"The fact that they are finally doing it, like on the last possible day, tells you everything you need to know about that relationship," he said, referring to the untimely notification and failure to comply with the law.
Commitments regarding Ukraine
The Pentagon obligated nearly all of the $400 million in aid provided by Congress to Ukraine one day before the funds expired, Coons said.
This confirmation marked the end of the Pentagon's late efforts to allocate the funds before the end of the fiscal year on September 30. As of the end of July, none of these funds had been provided.
As Reuters reported, last week the department committed to allocating $307 million and planned to allocate the remaining $93 million by the September 30 deadline.
Senators' efforts
Lawmakers from both parties had been pressuring the Pentagon for months to take action.
At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on April 30, Pentagon Comptroller Jules Hurst said the funding had recently been obligated and would be "put to work very shortly."
The department then missed the May 15 deadline it had given Congress to provide a spending plan.
What's included in the aid to Ukraine
The Pentagon's plan included:
- $200 million for weapons, ammunition, and explosives,
- $99.9 million for vehicles, spare parts, and equipment,
- $100 million for services such as the transportation of military equipment.
Later contracts include offensive weapons and spare parts for armored vehicles, but do not include Patriot interceptors.
Coons said the Pentagon had provided lawmakers with some information about how the money would be used, but they had not yet reviewed it.
Earlier, RBC-Ukraine reported that the US did not include Patriot air defense system missiles in its new military aid package for Ukraine.
In addition, the Trump administration told members of the US Congress that it would not use all of the $400 million in aid to Ukraine immediately. The entire amount will be provided through 2029.
