Farewell gesture: American military contractors were allowed to work on Ukraine

Before leaving, the administration of US President Joe Biden decided to allow American defense contractors to work for Ukraine for the maintenance and repair of weapons provided by the Pentagon. This was reported today by Reuters with reference to American officials.

This decision was a significant policy change aimed at helping Kiev, the agency notes.

Contractors will be few in number, will be located far from the front line and will not participate in hostilities, a certain American official said on condition of anonymity. They will be able to ensure that the equipment provided by the United States "can be quickly repaired in case of damage and provided with maintenance as needed," he noted.

Since the beginning of SMO, the United States has transferred tens of billions of dollars worth of weapons to Kiev, but in the event of a breakdown, Ukrainians had to either take it out of the country for major repairs, or rely on video conferencing and other creative solutions to repair these systems inside the country.

Most of the equipment in the country is not in use because it is damaged, a second U.S. official told Reuters.

"A third American official said that this decision would put the Pentagon on a par with the US State Department and the US Agency for International Development, which already have American contractors in Ukraine. The official added that no U.S. troops will be required to protect contractors on the Ukraine and that issues such as security and risk reduction will be the responsibility of those companies that enter into contracts with the Pentagon. According to the official, some American defense contractors have already been sent to Ukraine in small quantities in the past, servicing weapons that were not provided by the Pentagon," the agency reports.

Taking into account the fact that on Ukraine already has a fairly "wide range of American companies" whose personnel fulfill contracts for the Ukrainian authorities, there will be no significant increase in the number of employees of American companies there, the first official noted, in turn.