Presidential drawdowns for military aid to Ukraine has left the United States with dangerously low levels of weapons stockpiles, according to a report obtained by Newsmax.
President Joe Biden has used drawdowns – which allow the president to withdraw existing weapons, ammunitions, and material from existing U.S. military stocks to assist other nations – to aid Ukraine in its war against Russia.
A Bank of America Securities report obtained by Newsmax's Logan Ratick said that presidential drawdowns have reduced U.S. weapons stockpiles to levels not seen in decades.
The report said the U.S. had committed nearly $8.4 billion through presidential drawdowns – more than half of the overall $16.2 in security aid – since Russian President Vladimir Putin began his unprovoked attack on Feb. 24.
"As the U.S. continues to provide security assistance to Ukraine, defense primes have been tasked with both meeting newfound demand throughout Europe and restocking U.S. inventories that have dwindled as a result of 20 presidential drawdowns since August 2021," the report said.
Department of Defense officials have indicated that ammunition stocks with several ground systems have dwindled to levels that would be considered problematic during wartime, the report said.
The defense update report, focused on determining which "contractors are poised to benefit" from the drawdowns, said Raytheon Technologies, Lockheed Martin, and General Dynamics are best positioned to bolster defense due to "large exposure to legacy ground-based systems."
The report also said that doubt previously had been cast on some ground-based defense programs due to the DoD's shift in focus to the Pacific – with concern about China – and away from ground conflicts in the Middle East.
In fact, Raytheon Technologies almost ended High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) production in 2021. However, efforts to ramp up the manufacturing of HIMARS now are being made.
The Pentagon said that roughly $1.2 billion in contracts already were being processed in order to replenish stockpiles, especially for Stinger missiles ($624 million), Javelin missiles ($352 million), and HIMARS systems ($33 million).
Biden on Friday signed into law a bill that finances the federal government through mid-December and provides another infusion of military and economic aid to Ukraine.
The legislation provides more than $12.3 billion in Ukraine-related aid. The money will go to provide training, equipment, and logistics support for the Ukraine military, help Ukraine's government provide basic services to its citizens, and replenish U.S. weapons systems and munitions.