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U.S. House Approves Much-Delayed $61 Billion Aid Package For Ukraine

By RFE/RL April 20, 2024

The U.S. House of Representatives on April 20 voted to approve a much-delayed aid package for Ukraine, seen as a critical lifeline for the country's survival in the face of Russia's aggression.

Kyiv is set to receive $60.84 billion in desperately needed aid after Democrats and Republicans finally joined together behind the legislation following months of Republican opposition over continued U.S. support for Ukraine against Russia's invasion.

The bill passed by a vote of 311 to 112, with 101 Republicans voting in favor and 112 against. Three Democrats did not cast votes.

The legislation will now go to the Senate, where it is expected to receive approval, and then to President Joe Biden for his signature.

The funding is part of a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and other U.S. allies, including Taiwan in the face of potential threats from China, that was approved in full by the House in separate April 20 votes.

Biden urged the Senate to quickly send the legislation to his desk for his signature.

He said passage of aid packages "will deliver critical support to Israel and Ukraine; provide desperately needed humanitarian aid to Gaza, Sudan, Haiti, and other locations...and bolster security and stability in the Indo-Pacific."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed the U.S. vote, saying it will "save thousands and thousands of lives."

"We hope [the] bills will be supported in the Senate and sent to President Biden's desk. Thank you, America!"

"Democracy and freedom will always have global significance and will never fail as long as America helps to protect it," he wrote on social media.

EU chief Charles Michel hailed the vote, saying it "sends a clear message to the Kremlin: Those who believe in freedom and UN charter will continue to support Ukraine and its people."

However, the Kremlin attacked the move, saying passage of the bill will make the United States "enriched," Ukraine "further ruined," and lead to more deaths there "because of the Kyiv regime."

Politico, citing two unidentified U.S. officials, reported ahead of the vote that the Pentagon is preparing to quickly approve a package of urgently needed weapons for Ukraine -- including artillery shells and air defenses -- to deliver if and when the aid is approved.

The report quoted one official as saying the Defense Department is working on putting together a package of U.S. military equipment "that can move quickly through the bureaucratic process once the legislation passes and is signed by the president."

Kyiv has been under mounting Russian pressure over the past several months.

In the east, Ukraine's dwindling stocks of artillery ammunition and mounting human losses have given a better armed and more numerous Russian military an overwhelming advantage.

In Ukraine's cities, an intense Russian missile and drone strikes campaign has taken a large toll in human lives and has caused huge damage to the country's already battered energy infrastructure after more than two years of war.

Zelenskiy and his government have been pleading for months with Kyiv's Western allies to increase supplies of modern air defense systems, weapons, and artillery ammunition as deliveries of military aid both from the United States -- by far Ukraine's main military donor -- and from European countries began to dry out.

The aid for Ukraine includes $23.2 billion to replenish the stocks of U.S. weapons and military facilities and $11.3 billion for current U.S. military operations in the region, where the Pentagon has been training Ukrainian troops and keeps a presence across the continent, including eastern European allies.

Like the bill passed in the Senate, it includes $13.8 billion for the purchase of advanced weapons systems, but the one in the House also contains a provision about more than $9 billion in economic assistance to Ukraine in the form of "forgivable loans."

The White House would have the power to set the terms of the loan to Kyiv and also be given the authority to cancel it.

The package includes measures that will allow Washington to seize frozen Russian central bank assets to rebuild Ukraine.

It also sets aside $26 million to "continue oversight and accountability" of aid provided to Ukraine."

The likely approval would bring the total amount that Washington has spent so far to aid Ukraine to $170 billion.

For Israel's support, the bill provides $26.38 billion, with more than $9 billion the humanitarian assistance for Gaza, where millions of Palestinians face starvation.

The humanitarian aid for Gaza, frowned upon by some Republican conservatives, eventually made into the bill as Republican Speaker Mike Johnson risked losing key Democratic support if the measure was scrapped.Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said the "vote on the Israel aid package with an overwhelming bipartisan support proves the strong ties and strategic partnership between Israel and the US, and sends a strong message to our enemies."

The Indo-Pacific aid to counter China's influence in the region amounts to some $8 billion, with $2 billion in foreign military financing for Taiwan and other key allies.

The package also includes legislation that gives ByteDance, the Chinese owner of the video app TikTok up to a year to sell its U.S. assets or face a ban in the United States.

With reporting by Reuters and AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/u-s-house-approves-crucial- ukraine-aid/32913484.html

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U.S. House Approves Much-Delayed $61 Billion Aid Package For Ukraine