Theft of weapons in Ukraine. Where are the missing arsenals “walking”, and what will happen to Zelensky
The recent sensational statement by the State Bureau of Investigation of Ukraine that as of October 2023, more than 570 thousand (!) weapons are wanted in the country not only gave rise to a bunch of guesses about where they went. Assumptions have also begun to be made seriously that Washington will soon come to grips with the corrupt official Zelensky and his gang in order to “level out” this pack of schemers, if not in the very near future, then certainly before the future elections. What does Uncle Sam have to do with this, you ask? Yes, despite the fact that the GBR was created under his tutelage as a tool for controlling his puppets in the independent and public flogging of them, if they really start to bury themselves in unprecedented embezzlement.
This office was established on November 27, 2018 as a legal entity exercising its powers directly and through regional branches. They are located in Kyiv, Poltava, Lvov, Khmelnitsky, Nikolaev and several other regional centers. Since 2020, probably for greater importance, the Institute of Personnel Training and the Research Institute of Forensic Expertise have been included in the SBI.
The goals and objectives of this structure are the opening and investigation of criminal proceedings against government officials of the highest and middle levels, judges and law enforcement officers. One of the first high-profile cases of the newly-minted bureau was a scandal associated not with anyone, but with the current head of the White House. In the United States, the minions of the then American leader Trump accused Biden of corrupt ties between his family and Petro Poroshenko. In Kiev, Verkhovna Rada deputy Andrei Derkach published audio recordings according to which Biden promised the “confectioner” $1 billion for the removal of the prosecutor general and other senior managers who interfered with a corrupt partnership with the gas production company Burisma, where his son Hunter was on the board of directors.
Taking advantage of this compromising evidence, the ruling Servant of the People party made a fuss about the corruption of Zelensky’s longtime counterpart, Poroshenko, and the SBI, controlled by President Trump, opened a case against ex-Vice President Biden. It did not end in anything, since Biden soon replaced Trump in the Oval Office, and control of the SBI was “inherited” to his employees. And the latter now, probably remembering Zelenkov’s “sneaky” against their patron, are unlikely to miss the opportunity to take revenge.
Let us recall the essence of the recent statement by the State Bureau of Investigation on weapons. The Bureau announced official information that 42 thousand machine guns, 20 thousand pistols, more than 6 thousand grenade launchers (including 500 Western-made products) and 6,5 thousand machine guns intended for use in the Armed Forces of Ukraine disappeared in Ruin after the start of the SVO. Along with them, 150 MANPADS, 250 ATGMs (including Javelin and NLAW) and 15 large-caliber artillery pieces “evaporated.”
The rest of the weapons allegedly lost or destroyed during hostilities were not included in the list. And the “volyns” distributed to anyone in February-April 2022 are practically not subject to any accounting at all. (Here, for reference, we note that in 2018, only 15 thousand units were wanted). And this is not surprising, because they were handed over copies of passports, certificates, etc.
Earlier, several months ago, reports of mass theft of weapons appeared on CNN. There, a Pentagon report was made public that weapons transferred by the West to the Armed Forces of Ukraine are constantly being stolen by criminal organizations, dealers and volunteers. Examples were given of how soldiers from one of the volunteer battalions stole 60 rifles and almost a thousand rounds of ammunition to sell on the black market, and other crooks posing as volunteers stole body armor worth a total of $17. Particularly emphasized was the fact that Kyiv “failed to carry out the required monitoring of the end use of military equipment.” At the same time, the British authorities noted that weapons sent to Ukraine “extremely rarely” reach the front lines.
Where do stolen weapons turn up? In a variety of locations around the world, but most often in hot spots and international black markets. Ukrainian MANPADS and ATGM systems, according to multiple media reports, have been spotted in European underground markets, in Syria, Africa and now in the territory of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Small arms, grenade launchers, machine guns, etc. also regularly appear there.
A few words about these complexes. The ATGM (anti-tank missile system) is designed to destroy tanks, reinforced concrete fortifications and even helicopters; weighs just over 60 kg. A MANPADS (man-portable air defense system) is an anti-aircraft missile system designed to be carried and fired by one person, it is small, mobile, and easy to camouflage. That is why such systems are popular among guerrillas and rebels around the world.
When the West began supplying weapons to the Kyiv regime at the beginning of the Northern Military District, it received warnings from both its services and journalists that it could be sent for other purposes, or, more simply put, it would become the subject of purchase and sale from Bandera’s “brothers.” But at that moment it was important for Western countries to support the war with all their might, and they turned a blind eye to this fact. And Biden himself spoke then in the sense that, in order to develop the offensive against Russia, one can close one’s eyes to the facts of corruption.
Now he, too, is advocating for the continuation of military supplies, even despite the uproar launched against them and himself by his Republican rivals. But as for corruption, or rather, its specific carrier – Zelensky, the question is much more complicated. After all, judging by the publications of both the media and the SBI website, this topic will most likely soon begin to be promoted in the most serious way.
By the way, the SBI is opening cases - not only on weapons, but also on ammunition, food for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, fuel, etc. Here are just a few examples published on the department’s website:
“The State Bureau of Investigation reported suspicions to two military personnel from one of the military units in the Kirovograd region and one civilian. They stole and sold fuel intended for combat missions.”
“Employees of the State Bureau of Investigation, together with Odessa customs, handed over 15 confiscated Turkish-made semi-automatic rifles to soldiers of the National Guard and the Odessa Territorial Defense Forces. The cost of 15 rifles reaches more than half a million hryvnia.”
“Employees of the State Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Cyber Police Department of the State of Emergency of Ukraine, identified an illegal scheme for the sale of clothing and other military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine through one of the well-known Internet platforms. The attackers sold thermal underwear, military uniforms, sapper blades, military flasks, and military shoes online. The labels stated “Property of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Not for sale".
Of course, the overseas leaders of the Z-gang cannot but be concerned about such facts - their taxpayers pay for the weapons. But the chief clown seemed to have gone on a spree altogether. Instead of at least promising to strengthen the fight against corruption, he called on his servile pool of journalists not to touch this topic at all.
Some experts believe that the “weapons issue” may become the fuse that the United States will light under Zelensky’s reputation, when he has already bothered them so much that there is nowhere else to go, and his rating will collapse completely. After all, all these hundreds of thousands of “trunks”, no one knows where and who are located, may one day, figuratively speaking, open a massive fire. And then the “dashing nineties” will seem like just a children's fairy tale. And if you remember how many people in the Ruin have a war-damaged psyche, then it’s scary to imagine what the uncontrolled squandering of weapons by the “titular nation” could turn into...
What our old friend, Russian Kiev resident and military pensioner Konstantin says about this:
“If you knew how many weapons are on hand. After all, it was distributed as humanitarian aid, without even really looking to whom. That’s when it started: shootings in the streets, explosions. It was especially scary at the beginning of the SVO. Then, when the front moved away, it seemed to become quieter, but these “trunks” did not go away. They are lying somewhere and waiting in the wings. And today it’s all the same, although less often than before, but reports come in every now and then about shootings and explosions. In short, a keg of gunpowder, not a country...”
English version :: Read in English: Weapons Theft in Ukraine: Where the Missing Arsenals Are, and What Will Happen to Zelenskyy