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Military expert Stupak explains why Trump wants to audit Biden's Ukraine aid

Lina Mostavlyuk
28 January, 2025 Tuesday
17:58

Military expert Ivan Stupak says Donald Trump's push to audit aid to Ukraine aims to uncover loopholes and cases of embezzlement to blame the previous administration

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Stupak shared this view on Espreso.

"Ukraine is awaiting an audit of the financial, material, and other assistance provided by the United States, particularly aid approved during the previous presidential administration. I believe Trump will try to use this as leverage, looking for gaps where material aid was mismanaged, whether it didn’t reach the military, was appropriated by Ukrainian officials, or, possibly, was shared with representatives of Biden's administration. This way, Trump aims to discredit the former president. That’s why this idea is being actively explored and discussed," Stupak explained.

The expert highlighted that many Ukrainian government bodies are now acting more cautiously. He noted that some officials sense potential changes following a possible Trump election victory.

"I want to mention another example. I won’t name the agencies, but some report they don’t fully understand what’s happening. It seems like the system is slowing down, nobody’s rushing, making abrupt decisions, or taking risks to avoid liability. We’ve seen 2.5 years of active work, but now the state system seems to be preparing for future changes. It’s not about specific decrees or orders; many officials just feel something is shifting, so they’re treading carefully," he added.

  • On his first day back in office, Donald Trump decided to temporarily freeze all U.S. foreign aid programs for 90 days to conduct a review.
  • The Center for Countering Disinformation clarified that this decision does not apply to military aid for Ukraine.
  • On January 24, media outlets reported that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had suspended most foreign aid grants for 90 days, which could potentially include aid to Ukraine.
  • On January 25, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied claims that U.S. military aid to Ukraine had been suspended.
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