According to sources within the US State Department, military equipment worth five billion dollars, equivalent to 48 billion kronor, has not been able to be exported to countries such as Denmark, Croatia and Poland.
The final destination of the weapons is not known, but according to Axios, deliveries to NATO countries often go on to Ukraine.
All US arms exports must be approved by Congress. But in order to approve the shipments, members of Congress must receive information from State Department employees – and the majority of those staff are furloughed, meaning the process is moving at a snail’s pace.
According to Axios, this includes the export of the Himars rocket artillery, the Amraam fighter jet and the Aegis missile defense system.
The lockdown has been going on for 40 days.
