Message from the Special IG
On February 24, 2022, Russian military forces launched an illegal and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The ensuing conflict has grown to become the largest land war in Europe since the end of World War II, leaving hundreds of thousands of casualties on both sides and displacing millions of innocent Ukrainian civilians from their homes.
The United States and the international community responded quickly and forcefully to this aggression. More than 50 nations have provided support to Ukraine, of which the United States is the largest single donor. The U.S. Congress appropriated approximately $113.4 billion for the U.S. response between February 2022 and December 2023. The U.S. Government coordinates military assistance to Ukraine under Operation Atlantic Resolve (OAR), an operation originally launched in response to Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula.
Since the full-scale invasion, the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General (DoD OIG) has worked closely with our colleagues from the Offices of the Inspector General for the Department of State (State OIG) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID OIG), as well as more than 20 other oversight partners from across the Federal Government on the Ukraine Oversight Interagency Working Group, to ensure a prompt, collaborative, and comprehensive approach to oversight of all aspects of U.S. Government support to Ukraine. That collaboration continued as, following the DoD’s declaration of OAR as an overseas contingency operation, I was named Lead Inspector General for OAR by the Chair of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, effective in October 2023.
More recently, in December 2023, Congress re-designated the Lead IG as the Special Inspector General for OAR with additional responsibilities and reporting requirements to ensure whole-of-government oversight and transparency of this multi-faceted and resource-intensive effort. This first quarterly report on OAR and the Ukraine response for the period October 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023, provides a detailed look at U.S. security assistance to Ukraine and regional allies, financial support to Ukraine’s government, increased U.S. military activity in Europe, and other U.S. Government operations related to Ukraine response efforts.
In January 2023, I traveled to Ukraine and other nations in the region with my counterparts from State OIG and USAID OIG to gain a fuller understanding of the situation on the ground. I was pleased to travel back with them to the region in early 2024 to obtain a first-hand update from U.S. and Ukrainian officials and to participate in site visits where we were able to observe the administration and impact of U.S. assistance. In meetings with senior officials, my colleagues and I expressed the importance of accountability and transparency with regard to such assistance, including the expectation that OIG personnel—now working on the ground at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv—would be promptly notified if there was even a hint of its misuse. The officials with whom we met expressed their understanding and agreement with these principles, and we will continue to ensure we get the information we need to inform our work.
We also will continue to report quarterly on the status of OAR and the Ukraine response, other U.S. Government activity in Europe, and efforts to counter Russian aggression. I would like to thank all of the women and men who make this oversight effort possible, especially those stationed in and near Ukraine.
$113.4 Billion for the Ukraine Response
- $62.3B to DoD for weapons, equipment, and training for the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF), replenishment of DoD stocks transferred to the UAF; and enhanced U.S. military presence in Europe.
- $46.3B to State and USAID for economic support for Ukraine, including cash for Ukrainian civil authorities; humanitarian assistance, and diplomatic and administrative operations.
- $4.8B to other U.S. Government entities, including Treasury, Energy, Justice, the NSC, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
U.S. Forces Increase European Presence Following Russian’s Full-scale Invasion
- From Oct. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2023, 80,000–90,000 U.S. military personnel were in Europe supporting OAR.
- The U.S. has provided more military assistance to Ukraine than any other nation.
- The U.S. ability to track sensitive defense articles provided to Ukraine has improved, but the U.S. Government still lacks full visibility on their condition and how they are used.
- From Feb. 2022 to Dec. 2023, the DoD provided individual and platform-specific training to approximately 5,500 UAF troops.
- With few international forces in Ukraine, it is difficult to assess the effectiveness of the training.
Read this and more on pages 34-40 of the report
“Coalition of the Willing” Supports Ukraine
- The Security Assistance Group-Ukraine (SAG-U) and International Donor Coordination Center (IDCC) coordinate military assistance and training for the UAF.
- The IDCC functions as a “coalition of the willing”—a voluntary coordination entity with no multinational command structure.
Read this and more on pages 34-40 of the report
State, USAID Assistance Support Ukraine’s Immediate Needs and Eventual Integration into Europe
- Efforts include:
- Anti-corruption programs that focus on institutional reform and capacity-building.
- Food assistance, support for displaced persons, cash assistance, and health sector assistance.
- Training and equipment for border guard units and demining assistance
- Economic and develop assistance to alleviate the global food crisis caused by the loss of Ukrainian grain.
- USAGM and U.S. Embassy Kyiv use radio, television, and social media to counter Russian disinformation.
- State and USAID adjusted their operations to monitor assistance in wartime conditions.
Read this and more on pages 57-92 of the report
U.S. Inspectors General Provide Whole-of-Government Ukraine Oversight
- The DoD, State, and USAID OIGs collaborate with 20 other Federal oversight agencies through the Ukraine Oversight Interagency Working Group.
- Nearly 400 OIG personnel are focused on Ukraine oversight, including a small but growing contingent at U.S. Embassy Kyiv.
- Audits and evaluations by the Special IG and partner agencies found:
- U.S. pre-positioned weapons in Europe were poorly maintained and not fully functional.
- Sensitive weapons and equipment were not consistently inventoried.
- U.S. Army service contracts in Poland included lax oversight of logistics.
- U.S. Embassy Kyiv conducted limited in-person “primary” end-use monitoring in Ukraine as the evolving security situation allowed.
- In all cases, the OIGs make recommendations for improvement and follow up on implementation.
Read this and more on pages 17–18, 36-37, 40-43, 119-124, 134-135 of the report
Additional Information
For more information, visit the following agency websites related to Ukraine: