MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th November, 2022) US President Joe Biden has resisted bipartisan calls to get a clearer view of how American arms are being handled by moving inspectors closer to the frontline for fear this may antagonize Russia, media reported.
Rep. Mike Waltz, one of US lawmakers pushing for increased oversight of weapons handed over to Ukraine, said in an interview with the Washington Post that Ukraine's transparency record was too poor to let American weapons out of sight.
US officials told the daily on the condition of anonymity that American experts were currently conducting weapons inspections unarmed, a condition which precludes them from going deeper into Ukraine.
Pentagon spokesperson Patrick Ryder said the US was conducting inspections where security conditions permitted and solely at locations away from the frontline.
Checkups are reportedly conducted when weapons are being transferred to Ukrainians, the only exception being sensitive technology. Missile systems like Avengers, Stingers and Javelins warrant "enhanced" monitoring of the recipient nation.
Earlier US reports suggested that Americans had performed just two in-person inspections in Ukraine since February, accounting for about 10% of the 22,000 US-supplied weapons, including Stingers and Javelins.
