Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro announced that an extensive audit of military inventory has uncovered a massive shortfall in weaponry and ammunition across two major military bases. The missing arsenal includes over a million rounds of ammunition and several high-impact weapons, sparking concerns about internal corruption and security lapses within the armed forces.

The audit’s findings detailed that approximately 1.3 million 5.56mm bullets, hundreds of thousands of bullets of other calibers, two Spike missiles, numerous anti-tank weapons, 37 Nimrod missiles, thousands of grenades, thousands of mortar rounds, and 550 rocket-propelled grenade launchers are unaccounted for. President Petro suggested that these weapons might have been illicitly distributed, with a notable number potentially falling into the hands of a rebel group active in the southwest of Colombia. There is also suspicion that some of the munitions may have been smuggled to Haiti.

In his statement, President Petro emphasized the urgent need to address corruption within the armed forces, stating, “The only way to explain this type of lacking inventory is that there has existed, for a long time, networks of people in the armed forces and civilians dedicated to mass commercialization of arms, using legal arms from the Colombian state. We must, undoubtedly, completely separate the armed forces, as with any branch of public power, from any incident of corruption. That is the only way to guarantee the safety of our citizens and of the armed forces themselves.”

In response to the findings, the President has directed the Colombian defense minister to thoroughly investigate the matter. Additionally, several military officials responsible for the security and management of the implicated facilities have been relieved of their duties.