Law enforcement authorities have uncovered a significant corruption scheme involving the procurement of substandard weaponry for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to a report by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the case centers on the purchase of outdated anti-tank grenade launchers at inflated prices.
The contract, signed between the state-owned enterprise “Defense Procurement Agency” and a private company, involved the delivery of 6,000 RPG-75M grenade launchers valued at 637 million UAH. Per contractual obligations, the supplier was supposed to provide brand-new equipment produced between 2024 and 2026. Instead, inspections revealed that the units delivered to military units were manufactured in the 1980s.
Investigators discovered that the items had been subjected to rebranding. Under the new labels, old markings in Czech were found, and some components showed signs of oxidation, indicating they had been in storage for decades. The components were identified as having been produced between 1986 and 1988. Remarkably, the Logistics Forces Command of the Armed Forces had warned against the low efficiency of this type of weapon even before the contract was finalized. Despite these warnings, the contract was signed, and the supplier received an advance payment of 318.5 million UAH.
The first shipment, consisting of 3,024 units, arrived in May 2026 at a military arsenal. Due to immediate concerns regarding the quality of the weaponry, it was placed in temporary storage and was never issued to front-line units. The SBU is currently investigating potential collusion between officials at the state procurement agency and the supplier. A criminal case has been initiated under the article concerning the obstruction of the lawful activities of the Armed Forces during a special period.
This incident is part of a broader crackdown on corruption within defense procurement, where previous investigations have already uncovered losses amounting to 3.2 billion UAH. The government is now actively strengthening protections for whistleblowers within the military sector to ensure that financial resources intended for defense are used effectively and honestly. As the investigation continues, authorities have conducted more than a dozen searches to gather evidence of systemic fraud.