The prolonged US government shutdown has delayed the export of US weapons worth more than US$5 billion intended to support NATO Allies and Ukraine.

Source: Axios, as reported by European Pravda

Details: A senior US State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the shutdown is "really harming both our allies and partners and US industry to actually deliver a lot of these critical capabilities overseas".

The official noted that the delay has affected shipments of weapons such as AMRAAM missiles, Aegis combat systems and HIMARS for allies including Denmark, Croatia and Poland.

While the final destinations of the exports remain unclear, arms sold to NATO partners are often later transferred to support Ukraine.

The official added that the suspended transactions include both direct government sales to NATO allies and export licences for private US defence companies.

Normally, such sales proceed smoothly, as "the Arms Export Control Act requires Congress to review weapon sale proposals".

Due to the shutdown, many State Department employees responsible for briefing congressional staff and completing the approval process have been furloughed, causing major slowdowns.

The State's Bureau of Political-Military Affairs operated last month with only about a quarter of its usual staff supporting arms sales, the official said.

Background:

• On 5 November, the federal government's shutdown – triggered by the lack of an approved supplemental budget – became the longest in US history, surpassing the 35-day record set during Donald Trump's first term.
• Just hours before breaking that record, the Trump administration warned of chaos at airports nationwide if the crisis extended into a sixth week, as worsening staff shortages could force closures of airports and parts of US airspace.
• Euronews reported that US troops stationed in Germany might not receive their November pay due to the shutdown.
• In Italy, local employees at several US military bases have already gone unpaid, prompting Rome to launch talks with Washington to resolve the issue.

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