U.S. Allows American Military Contractors to Deploy to Ukraine

9 November, 2024 Maintenance of the F-16 fighter of the US Air Force.

2016. Photo: dvdshub.net For the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion, the Biden administration has allowed American military contractors to deploy to Ukraine.

CNN reported on this. According to CNN, the Biden administration has lifted a de facto ban on American military contractors deploying to Ukraine to help the country's military maintain and repair U.S.-provided weapons systems. These contractors will be located far from the front line and will not participate in combat operations.

They will help the Armed Forces of Ukraine to quickly repair and maintain the equipment provided by the United States for its rapid return to the front line. In particular, it regards the maintenance of F16 fighter jets and Patriot air defense systems, an official with direct knowledge of the plan told CNN. Prior to that, Ukraine had organized the repair of U.S.-supplied military equipment that had been damaged in combat.

However, in the case of complex systems or significant damage, it still had to be repaired outside Ukraine--in Poland, Romania, and other NATO countries.

Ukrainian military workshop for restoring M777 howitzers. April 2024. Ukraine.

Frame from the Deutsche Welle Ukrainian video

Policy change

The new policy, approved previously this month before the election, will allow the Pentagon to award contracts to U.S. contractors to work in Ukraine. Previously, the Biden administration had rejected similar ideas due to security concerns. Although representatives of the Department of Defense were in favor of sending repair specialists.

Unnamed officials told CNN that they hope this will speed up the maintenance and repair of weapons systems used by the Ukrainian military. However, it is not clear whether Donald Trump will keep the policy in place when he takes office in January. "In order to help Ukraine repair and maintain military equipment provided by the U.S. and its allies, DoD (Department of Defense) is soliciting bids for a small number of contractors who will help Ukraine maintain the assistance we've already provided," a defense official said.

Maintenance of the M2 Bradley IFV. Photo credits: Pentagon

Companies bidding for contracts will have to develop plans to reduce threats to their employees, officials told the newspaper. "The Department made this decision after careful risk assessment and in coordination with interagency stakeholders.

Each US contractor, organization or company will be responsible for the safety and security of their employees and will be required to include risk mitigation plans as part of their bids," the defense official said.