美国陆军正着手向诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司和全球军事产品公司追缴因延迟向乌克兰交付炮弹而产生的罚款，这体现了五角大楼加强国防承包商责任意识的努力。

陆军合同司令部表示，他们正在根据五角大楼监察长11月20日发布的一份报告的建议采取行动。该报告要求对延迟交付大口径炮弹（其中一些延迟长达18个月）的公司处以110万美元的罚款。陆军在一份声明中表示。

声明还指出，陆军仍在评估具体的罚款金额，目前“暂不公布每家公司的具体罚款数额”。

声明称：“陆军致力于通过积极监督合同执行情况、记录履约情况以及对违约行为采取合同规定的补救措施，来追究承包商的责任。”

虽然罚款金额仅占涉事合同总额的一小部分，但陆军的声明是在国防部长皮特·赫格塞斯承诺改革五角大楼的采购流程并惩罚未能按时交付关键物资的承包商之后发布的。

诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司的一位发言人表示，“在这种情况下，陆军才是发表评论的合适人选。”总部位于佛罗里达州坦帕市的全球军事产品公司的代表没有回复记者的电话和电子邮件置评请求。

陆军采购主管布伦特·英格拉姆在给彭博新闻的另一份声明中补充说，“陆军承认”监察长的担忧，并表示“纠正措施已经完成或正在积极进行中”，包括努力追回110万美元的罚款。

2022 年 1 月，根据拜登政府的乌克兰安全援助计划，承包商获得了一份为期五年的特种弹药和武器系统“不定期交付、不定期数量合同”。

五角大楼监察长审查了诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司和全球军事公司价值19亿美元的七份合同。根据11月20日的审计报告，在审查的七份合同中，有五份合同中，陆军未能“有效采购”乌克兰使用的弹药。报告称，陆军可能为这些弹药支付了过高的价格，未能确保承包商“及时”交付，也没有追究承包商未能按时交付的责任。

监察长表示，陆军还订购了价值9.07亿美元的弹药，但尚未交付。如果取消这笔订单，“这些资金可以用于更好的用途”。

当被问及这笔弹药订单的状况时，陆军表示，这是授予承包商的五份独立合同的总和。陆军声明称，“部分弹药已经交付，未交付订单的一部分将被取消，剩余部分将交付。”

The US Army is moving to collect penalties from Northrop Grumman Corp. and Global Military Products Inc. over late deliveries of artillery ammunition to Ukraine, an example of the Pentagon’s effort to make defense contractors more accountable.

The Army’s Contracting Command said it’s acting on recommendations in a Nov. 20 Pentagon Inspector General report that called for $1.1 million in penalties over the delayed shipments of large caliber shells, some of which were 18 months late, according to an Army statement.

The service is still assessing what the exact penalty will be and the amount per company is “not available for release at this time,” it said.

“The Army is committed to holding contractors accountable by actively monitoring contract execution, documenting performance and applying contractual remedies for non-compliance,” according to the statement.

While the penalty amount represents only a fraction of the contracts in question, the Army’s statement comes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth promised to reform the Pentagon’s acquisition process and punish contractors delivering crucial supplies behind schedule.

Read More: Hegseth Slams Risk-Averse Defense Culture in Starbase Visit

A Northrop Grumman spokesman said “in this case, the Army is the right source for comment.” Representatives for Tampa, Florida-based Global Military Products didn’t respond to calls and emails for comment.

Army acquisition boss Brent Ingraham added in a separate statement to Bloomberg News that “the Army acknowledges” the inspector general’s concerns and said “corrective actions are either completed or actively underway,” including trying to collect the $1.1 million.

The contractors had received a five-year Special Ammunition and Weapons System “indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract” in January 2022 under the Biden administration’s Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.

The Pentagon’s inspector general reviewed seven Northrop Grumman and Global Military contracts valued at $1.9 billion. The Army didn’t “effectively procure ammunition” for Ukraine’s use in five of the seven contracts reviewed, according to the Nov. 20 audit. The service may have paid too much for the ammunition, didn’t ensure the contractors delivered in a “timely manner,” and didn’t hold the contractors accountable for the missed deadlines, it said.

The Army also ordered $907 million in ammunition that hasn’t yet been delivered and “could put these funds to better use” if canceled, the inspector general said.

Asked on the status of that ammunition order, the Army said it’s an aggregation of five separate contracts awarded to the contractors. “A portion of the ammunition has been delivered, a portion of the undelivered order will be canceled, and the remainder of the order will be delivered,” the Army statement said.