Ukraine Fails US Fiscal Transparency Standards Despite $15Bln In Recent Aid - State Dept.

Ukraine failed to meet the US government's fiscal transparency requirements or make significant progress toward them despite receiving more than $15 billion in military aid from the United States under the Biden administration, the US State Department said on Friday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th September, 2022) Ukraine failed to meet the US government's fiscal transparency requirements or make significant progress toward them despite receiving more than $15 billion in military aid from the United States under the Biden administration, the US State Department said on Friday.

The State Department's 2022 Fiscal Transparency Report does not list Ukraine among the 72 of the 141 assessed countries that met minimum requirements for fiscal transparency. Ukraine was also not included in the 27 countries that failed to meet the minimum requirements but made significant progress toward them.

While some information about the Ukrainian government's expenditure and revenue streams were made available, Ukraine also maintains off-budget accounts that are not independently audited, the report said.

The Ukrainian government does not always appear to follow legal practices and procedures for awarding natural resource extraction contracts or licenses, the report said.

Ukraine's fiscal transparency would be improved by ensuring its audit institution meets international standards of independence, subjecting off-budget accounts to public oversight and following applicable natural resource extraction laws, the report said.

Other countries that failed to meet the US government's minimum fiscal transparency standards include Afghanistan, Haiti, Iraq, Pakistan and Yemen, the report said.

Russia was not analyzed as part of the report, which is conducted annually on countries eligible to receive US foreign assistance to ensure US taxpayer funds are used appropriately, the report added.

The analyses include evaluation of budget disclosure and review processes, audit independence and public availability of information, according to the report.

The US has pledged approximately $15.2 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Biden administration in January 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday.