FAKE: The Pentagon demands an audit of all weapons supplied to Ukraine before Trump’s return — WSJ

A video report, supposedly from The Wall Street Journal, is being circulated online claiming that the U.S. Department of Defense is demanding that Kyiv conduct a full audit of all American weapons supplied to Ukraine. This demand is alleged to be due to the anticipated reduction or even complete cessation of arms supplies to Ukraine following Donald Trump’s potential victory in the presidential elections.

However, this is a fake. The Wall Street Journal did not publish such a report, and the quotes from the journalist in the video are fabricated.

Propagandists claim that the video report was published by The Wall Street Journal. However, there is no such video on the official website of the publication, nor on its social media pages on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter (X), TikTok, and YouTube. Moreover, the font used in the fake video differs from that used in WSJ’s genuine reports.

There is no news about such a demand from the U.S. Department of Defense in either Western or Ukrainian media. Additionally, there is no information online about a supposed 20-day Pentagon deadline for a weapons audit. The U.S. Department of Defense’s website does not mention any requirement for Ukraine to conduct such an audit.

Furthermore, all quotes attributed to The Wall Street Journal’s national security and intelligence correspondent, Warren Strobel, are fabricated — he has not written about any audit in his articles or on social media. The creators of the fake video also misrepresented him, calling him “Warren P.” The journalist’s last name is Strobel, and his middle name, which he does not use without his last name, starts with “P”. WSJ colleagues would not have made such an error.

Warren Strobel has also not written about the risk of weapons supplied to Ukraine ending up on the black market. There are no officially recorded instances of weapons provided by Western partners being resold or supplied from Ukraine to the black market. U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celeste Wallander stated that the U.S. has adapted its reporting practices to combat conditions to avoid the risk of illegal arms leaks.

Indeed, the supply and end-use of weapons are already monitored by partners, so Ukraine does not need to conduct a separate audit. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, U.S. government oversight bodies have been publishing reports with conclusions and recommendations for improving weapons transfer control and enhancing monitoring efficiency.

For instance, in early January 2024, the U.S. Department of Defense’s Inspector General released a report titled “Evaluation of the DoD’s Enhanced End-Use Monitoring of Defense Articles Provided to Ukraine”. The report positively assessed Ukraine’s efforts to monitor the supply of weapons and equipment, noting that in some cases, Ukrainian officials conducted inventories more thoroughly than their American counterparts. Commenting on the report, Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder stated, “there is no credible evidence of illicit diversion of US-provided advanced conventional weapons from Ukraine”. On June 18, 2024, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime published a report on arms market trends in the context of Russian aggression. It stated that while any war carries the risk of increased international arms trade, Ukraine has demonstrated the ability to prevent these risks and has implemented strict arms control and accounting measures. The report notes that arms control is one of the state’s priorities.

The narrative that military aid to Ukraine ends up in the hands of terrorists and criminal groups is primarily aimed at a Western audience. In this way, propagandists attempt to undermine the trust of partners in Ukraine. Previously, we debunked claims that Ukraine allegedly sold Javelin anti-tank missiles to Islamic terrorists.