FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
On September 1, leaders from the Offices of Inspector General (OIGs) for the Department of State (State), U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and Department of Defense (DoD) met with key anti-corruption officials from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), and the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) of Ukraine.
The OIGs and the Ukrainian delegation discussed the importance of the U.S.-Ukraine partnership in combatting the misuse of U.S. assistance. To signify this commitment to transparency and oversight, the leaders of State and USAID OIGs and the Ukrainian NABU delegation signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) that created formal information-sharing agreements and investigative collaboration to safeguard U.S. assistance to Ukraine.
Department of State Acting Inspector General Diana Shaw stated, “State OIG remains dedicated to ensuring transparency and accountability for every dollar of U.S.-taxpayer-funded assistance flowing through the Department of State to Ukraine. The September 1 MOU signing is an important step toward formalizing our shared commitment to rooting out fraud and corruption involving U.S. funds and holding bad actors fully accountable. The key to this commitment is cooperation from Ukrainian anti-corruption partners to share information and, where appropriate, conduct joint investigations. This cooperation will help to preserve the integrity of programs funded through U.S. assistance and stamp out fraud and corruption wherever it is found.”
Nicole Angarella, Acting Deputy Inspector General performing the duties of the Inspector General for USAID OIG, stated, “Oversight of U.S. assistance to Ukraine remains a top priority, and this MOU is yet another tool in our oversight arsenal to prevent corruption and misuse of funds provided to Ukraine by USAID. We will continue to strengthen our relationships with our Ukrainian counterparts and underscore the importance of accountability for those who seek to defraud USAID, the American taxpayers, and the Ukrainian people.”
USAID OIG also has two existing MOUs with Ukraine’s Special Anticorruption Prosecutor and Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation.
Earlier this year, State, USAID, and Department of Defense OIGs published the Joint Strategic Oversight Plan–Ukraine Response that highlights 64 ongoing and planned oversight products and 14 completed products related to the U.S. Ukraine response.
For more information on the three OIGs’ oversight of the U.S.-Ukraine response, visit:
https://www.stateoig.gov/ukraine-response-oversight
https://oig.usaid.gov/our-work/ukraine-oversight
https://www.dodig.mil/Ukraine/
For more information, please contact State OIG’s Office of Congressional and Public Affairs at publicaffairs@stateoig.gov, or USAID OIG’s Congressional and Public Affairs Division at OIGLegAffairs@usaid.gov.
To report fraud, waste, abuse, or corruption in U.S.-funded Ukraine programs, please see the linked OIG Hotline information in English and Ukrainian.