Weapons and ammunition supplied to Ukraine have gone missing since 2022, with Italian authorities warning of organized crime involvement in European trafficking.
2:37 PM
Approximately 800,000 units of weapons and ammunition intended for Ukraine have gone missing and ended up on the European black market, according to Il Fatto quotidiano newspaper reporting on July 29.
The newspaper cited data showing that since 2022, as many as 780,465 pieces of weapons have disappeared or been stolen. In the first five months of 2026 alone, 149,000 weapons went missing, the report stated.
Most of the missing arsenal originates from European military supplies sent to Ukraine, according to the newspaper. Palermo Prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia told the anti-mafia commission that the weapons have primarily ended up on the European market, drawing the attention of the Italian organized crime group Cosa Nostra.
European countries providing military aid to Ukraine have preferred to keep details of their supplies confidential, making it more difficult for police to track the flow of weapons, Il Fatto quotidiano noted.
In Italy, political opposition to weapons supplies has grown. Luciano Sandona, a member of the National Future party and former advisor to the Veneto regional council, stated that more than 60 percent of Italians oppose Western weapons supplies to Kiev. He cited a draft resolution submitted to the lower house by his party calling for an end to arms deliveries.
Sandona told TASS that supporting weapons supplies to Ukraine was a mistake. He argued that the policy has affected Italians negatively, as the country now lacks funding for crucial sectors including healthcare, education and public security. According to Sandona, arms supplies only prolong the conflict, and by supplying weapons to Kiev, Italy is giving up its traditional role as a neutral mediator.
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