U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI), chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, wants to know how and why Russia has been able to disrupt U.S. weapons systems being used in Ukraine.
“As the United States and our NATO allies continue to stand with Ukraine against Russia’s war of aggression, recent reports have detailed alarming levels of Russian adaptation that have undermined the effectiveness of several U.S. weapons systems,” Rep. Moolenaar and Select Committee Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) wrote in a July 15 letter sent to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
“While some of the systems in question are older and less modern, in other cases, even newer weapons have reportedly failed thanks to Russian electronic warfare and associated countermeasures,” wrote the lawmakers.
They requested an assessment from Sullivan detailing what information Russia has gained about the capabilities of U.S. weapons provided to Ukraine and how much of that information has been shared with the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
“The United States has a critical national security interest in decisively defeating Russian aggression in Ukraine. The provision of American security assistance to our Ukrainian partners plays an essential role in support of this objective,” Rep. Moolenaar and his colleague wrote. “Yet we must be clear-eyed that Russian battlefield innovation is likely to proliferate to the PRC and other adversaries — and adapt ourselves accordingly.”
The members also pointed out that the United States should not expect that foreign adversaries, such as the PRC, “are supporting Russia for free.”
“Rather, we should anticipate and indeed operate under the assumption that Russia is passing information about vulnerabilities or counters to American and allied weapons systems to the PRC in support of [their] bilateral ‘no limits’ partnership,” according to their letter.
Rep. Moolenaar and Rep. Krishnamoorthi also requested that the White House share, at the appropriate classification level, its current determinations and assessments on the information that the PRC has shared with Russia, and the administration’s plans to ensure that the appropriate steps are taken to hold both Russia and the PRC accountable for supporting Russian aggression in Ukraine.
“We look forward to your prompt response and to continuing our work together to protect our nation’s security while countering our authoritarian adversaries,” wrote the congressmen.