The Pentagon found it had overestimated the amount of funding for ammunition, missiles and other equipment it sent to Ukraine by $6.2 billion due to an accounting error, a spokesperson said on Tuesday, more than double the amount previously disclosed.
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said a detailed review of the accounting error found that the military services used replacement costs rather than the book value of equipment that was pulled from Pentagon stocks and sent to Ukraine.
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She said final calculations show there was an error of $3.6 billion in the current fiscal year and $2.6 billion in the 2022 fiscal year, which ended last Sept. 30.
The $6.2 billion breaks down to $3.6 billion for fiscal year 2023 and $2.6 billion for fiscal year 2022, she said, adding that the errors did not impact the size of presidential drawdown authority or support for Ukraine.
Although President Joe Biden has said consistently that the US and its allies will back Ukraine against Russia’s invasion for as long as needed, some Republican lawmakers have objected to the cost and indefinite timeline of security assistance. With no end in sight for the war, the administration faces the prospect of seeking additional money over such opposition once current funding runs out.
Ukraine’s government has pushed for more assistance as it conducts a long-awaited counteroffensive to eject dug-in Russian forces from more of its territory. Officials from Kyiv’s key allies gather in London this week to discuss funding for reconstruction of the country.
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