US Congress passes Ukraine aid after months of delay
A sweeping foreign aid package easily passed the U.S. Congress late on Tuesday after months of delay, clearing the way for billions of dollars in fresh Ukraine funding amid advances from Russia's invasion force and Kyiv's shortages of military supplies.
The Senate approved by 79 to 18 four bills passed by the House of Representatives on Saturday, after House Republican leaders abruptly switched course last week and allowed a vote on the $95 billion in mostly military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and U.S. partners in the Indo-Pacific.
The four bills were combined into one package in the Senate, which President Joe Biden said he would sign into law on Wednesday.
The largest provides $61 billion in critically needed funding for Ukraine; a second provides $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones around the world, and a third mandates $8.12 billion to 'counter communist China' in the Indo-Pacific.
Biden's administration is already preparing a $1 billion military aid package for Ukraine, the first sourced from the bill, two U.S. officials told Reuters. It includes vehicles, Stinger air defense munitions, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, 155 millimeter artillery ammunition, TOW and Javelin anti-tank munitions and other weapons that can immediately be put to use on the battlefield.
Reuters
A sweeping foreign aid package easily passed the U.S. Congress late on Tuesday after months of delay, clearing the way for billions of dollars in fresh Ukraine funding amid advances from Russia's invasion force and Kyiv's shortages of military supplies.
The Senate approved by 79 to 18 four bills passed by the House of Representatives on Saturday, after House Republican leaders abruptly switched course last week and allowed a vote on the $95 billion in mostly military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and U.S. partners in the Indo-Pacific.
The four bills were combined into one package in the Senate, which President Joe Biden said he would sign into law on Wednesday.
The largest provides $61 billion in critically needed funding for Ukraine; a second provides $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones around the world, and a third mandates $8.12 billion to 'counter communist China' in the Indo-Pacific.
Biden's administration is already preparing a $1 billion military aid package for Ukraine, the first sourced from the bill, two U.S. officials told Reuters. It includes vehicles, Stinger air defense munitions, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, 155 millimeter artillery ammunition, TOW and Javelin anti-tank munitions and other weapons that can immediately be put to use on the battlefield.
Reuters
A sweeping foreign aid package easily passed the U.S. Congress late on Tuesday after months of delay, clearing the way for billions of dollars in fresh Ukraine funding amid advances from Russia's invasion force and Kyiv's shortages of military supplies.
The Senate approved by 79 to 18 four bills passed by the House of Representatives on Saturday, after House Republican leaders abruptly switched course last week and allowed a vote on the $95 billion in mostly military aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and U.S. partners in the Indo-Pacific.
The four bills were combined into one package in the Senate, which President Joe Biden said he would sign into law on Wednesday.
The largest provides $61 billion in critically needed funding for Ukraine; a second provides $26 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid for civilians in conflict zones around the world, and a third mandates $8.12 billion to 'counter communist China' in the Indo-Pacific.
Biden's administration is already preparing a $1 billion military aid package for Ukraine, the first sourced from the bill, two U.S. officials told Reuters. It includes vehicles, Stinger air defense munitions, additional ammunition for high-mobility artillery rocket systems, 155 millimeter artillery ammunition, TOW and Javelin anti-tank munitions and other weapons that can immediately be put to use on the battlefield.
Reuters
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US Congress passes Ukraine aid after months of delay
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