By: Steven Ahle, Billings Report, February 24, 2023:

The chairman of the House Oversight Committee James Comer (R-KY) has written to Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, and USAID Administrator Samantha Power.

He is compelling them to give him a full accounting of the $113 billion in cash we have sent to Ukraine. National Security spokesman John Kirby claimed not to have seen “any signs” of corruption in Ukraine.

This came just one day after President Zelensky fired several cabinet members for corruption.

Comer wrote:

“Came one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired several top Ukrainian officials amid a corruption scandal. Providing US taxpayer funds in a war zone come with an inherent risk of fraud, waste, and abuse.” “Unrealistic timelines and expectations that prioritize spending quickly lead to increased corruption.”

DoD, State, and USAID must now produce all documents relating to US funding to Ukraine by March 8, 2023. The letter was signed by republican Representatives including Jim Jordan, Nancy Mace, Andy Biggs, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lauren Boebert and Anna Paulina Luna.

Dear Secretary Austin, Secretary Blinken, and Administrator Power:

The Committee on Oversight and Accountability is conducting oversight of the federal government’s administration of U.S. taxpayer-funded assistance to Ukraine. Since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly a year ago, Congress has provided more than $113 billion for security, humanitarian, economic, and governance assistance.

It is critical that government agencies administering these funds ensure they are used for their intended purposes to prevent and reduce the risk of waste, fraud, and abuse. The Committee seeks documents and information to understand how the Department of Defense (DOD), Department of State (State), and the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) are conducting oversight of these funds.

On January 25, 2023, U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, John Kirby claimed, “We have not seen any signs that our budgetary assistance has fallen prey to any kind of corruption in Ukraine,” and that all direct budgetary assistance, “goes through the World Bank.” Mr. Kirby continued, “I would go so far as to say the same on the security assistance side as well.”

These claims came one day after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fired several top Ukrainian officials amid a corruption scandal. Ukrainian government officials allegedly engaged in bribery, used government vehicles for personal use, and purchased inflated food supplies for Ukrainian forces. In response, President Zelensky named a new Minister of Defense. Based on Mr. Kirby’s remarks, however, the U.S. National Security Council appears unaware of this corruption scandal, heightening concerns that U.S. agencies are not conducting oversight of taxpayer assistance to Ukraine.

Providing security and humanitarian assistance for warfighting and reconstruction purposes comes with an inherent risk of fraud, waste, and abuse. The United States must identify these risks and develop oversight mechanisms to mitigate them.

We learned from efforts in Afghanistan that the World Bank does not always have effective monitoring and accounting of funds, and often lacks transparency. We also learned that unrealistic timelines and expectations that prioritize spending quickly lead to increased corruption and reduced effectiveness of programs.

As the United States continues to filter assistance through multilateral organizations with pressure to spend funds quickly, we must ensure proper protections are in place to prevent the misuse of funds.