Biden signed additional support for Kiev. US resumes military aid

In a speech after the signing of the law, Biden said that this step strengthens the security of the United States and the entire world. “Now we have to act fast,” he said in reference to US military aid deliveries to Ukraine, which have been blocked since late last year due to a lack of funding.

“I am seeing to it that deliveries begin immediately,” the president continued. “In the next few hours, literally in a few hours, we will start sending air defense equipment, ammunition, artillery and missile systems, and armored vehicles to Ukraine,” he said. His government estimates the value of the new package at one billion dollars, it includes, among other things, ammunition for HIMARS rocket launchers or Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.

Aid to Ukraine passed the US Congress after long delays:

The US House approved aid to Ukraine. They will also support Israel and Taiwan

For Biden, the approval of additional funding is a significant success, but legislative delays have significantly undermined his government’s efforts to help Ukrainians deal with Russian aggression, writes the AP agency. According to her, the new injection in the form of weapons and ammunition is unlikely to bring Ukraine an immediate turn for the better after months of problems on the battlefield.

So far, the US has provided Kyiv with more than $40 billion worth of military equipment since the Russian invasion began in February 2022. The failure of this support in recent months has been accompanied by the advance of Russian troops deeper into Ukrainian territory, as well as the problems of Ukrainian air defense, which is unable to reflect constant Russian shelling.

Opposition from the Republican Party

From resources newly allocated by Congress to support Ukraine they make up about three-quarters of the money for military purposes. The signed legislative package also includes $17 billion in aid to Israel, $9 billion in humanitarian aid, particularly in the Gaza Strip, and $8 billion for US partners in Southeast Asia.

Biden first asked for the approval of these expenses about six months ago, but his proposal met with resistance from the Republican Party, which conditioned approval on a significant tightening of immigration policy. In the end, the spending passed without this item, but with several additional items, including a mechanism aimed at tiktok or a plan to turn part of the aid to Ukraine into a forgivable loan.

“It was a difficult journey,” the president said today about the legislative process. “It should have been easier and it should have gotten there (to the president’s desk) faster,” he noted.

Russia has made significant progress in Ukraine, the newspaper writes. Kiev is running out of ammunition

The drag in Congress resulted from the complex situation in the legislature, where one chamber is narrowly controlled by the Republican Party and the other is similarly narrowly dominated by Democrats. The billions in support of Kyiv were eventually pushed through by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson despite the opposition of most of his party colleagues, while the approval of the money was supported by all Democrats. Some of them, on the other hand, refused to support the financing of Israel’s armaments due to the mass killing of civilians in Gaza.

Biden said passing the spending package would give Israel an important boost to help it defend against attacks by Iran and its allies in the region. At the same time, he spoke of a significant increase in humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza and called on Israel to ensure that food, water and medicine reach the Palestinians “without delay”.