Ukrainian authorities are investigating a massive embezzlement scheme as the United States is set to back Kiev’s failing war effort through 2024.
Security analyst
Mark Sleboda joined hosts Jamarl Thomas and Melik Abdul on
Sputnik’s Fault Lines program Monday to discuss the corruption plot and what it entails for the Biden administration’s support for the embattled Volodymyr Zelensky regime.
“And they reported early on in the conflict in 2022 that only some 30% of the weapons being supplied by the West were actually reaching the intended recipients in the frontlines and a considerable portion of the rest was being
sold off.”
The latest
corruption scheme, recently revealed by authorities in Kiev, revolves around the purchase of 100,000 mortar shells for Ukrainian forces. Some 1.5 billion Ukrainian hryvnias (about $40 million) was allegedly embezzled through the procurement effort as the hundreds of thousands of shells were never delivered.
Ukraine’s security service conducted raids on the residences of individuals accused of involvement in the plot, as well as offices at Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense and an arms supplier in Lvov.
The alleged scheme is the latest example of the Zelensky regime’s corruption, which Western backers of the country’s military effort have made pains to hide from the American public.
“NBC reported on this and then quietly pulled back the story under the hail of criticism that came with them reporting on the truth,” said Sleboda of the 2022 reports. “There is a proven recorded track record of this regime and the corruption involved. And it should come as no surprise to everyone – this regime has been corrupt, it is corrupt, and it will be corrupt going into the future.”
“American politicians and the taxpayers that are paying for it should just accept that a certain amount of the financial and military aid that they provide is just going to be skimmed off the top,” the analyst concluded.
The waste is significant, Sleboda noted, because “the US is running out of air defensive missiles trying to support its own forces.” Massive shipments of lethal aid to Ukraine and Israel have depleted stockpiles while the United States has also been
forced to defend its dozens of bases in the Middle East amidst anger over Israel’s Gaza campaign.
In recent months lawmakers in Washington have balked at throwing good money after bad to Zelensky’s failed war effort. In response, the Biden administration has explored the possibility of producing weapons more cheaply inside Ukraine.
“There is no logical plan for continuing the Kiev regime's war effort even through 2024, much less beyond, which means they are just going to continue and stumble through it as badly as they – perhaps even worse than they already have,” Sleboda concluded. “Because, of course, they can't actually accept that they've lost, and accept surrender terms.”