The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine is overhauling its procurement system after a major scandal involving the purchase of field rations without quality control. The department responsible for resource provision, which oversaw all decisions related to quantity, cost and procurement procedures, is being disbanded.
This move comes after an investigation revealed that the department had purchased field rations in 2022 without proper quality control. The rations, which were intended to feed Ukrainian troops on the front lines of the war against Russia, were found to be unfit for consumption because of damaged packaging.
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The head of the department is now under criminal investigation and has been suspended from his duties. He is also facing charges related to other alleged corruption schemes.
The Ministry of Defense is taking steps to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future. The functions of the disbanded department are being distributed among different units, including the Department of Procurement Policy, the Defense Procurement Agency and the Department of Planning.
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