Congress Passes $61B Ukraine Aid Package

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Facts

  • The US Senate on Tuesday voted 79 to 18 to approve a $95B bill to deliver security aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Indo-Pacific allies, including Taiwan.1
  • This comes after the US House of Representatives on Saturday voted 311 to 112 to approve the $95B package, which includes sending $61B in foreign aid to Kyiv and allowing the US to sell seized Russian assets and transfer the funds to Ukraine.2
  • Tuesday's vote comes as Russia has reportedly gained the advantage on much of the battlefield, while Ukrainian troops face a severe shortage of ammunition.3
  • The $95B national aid security package also includes $26B for Israel in its war against Hamas and humanitarian aid in Gaza, Sudan, and Haiti, as well as over $8B in military assistance to Taiwan.4
  • Pres. Joe Biden, who signed it into law on Wednesday, called the bill's passage a success and argued that the security package would make the US and the world safer.5

Sources: 1Guardian, 2Associated Press, 3TheFinancialTimes, 4Al Jazeera and 5New York Times.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Washington Post. The much-awaited US aid will help keep the Russia-Ukraine war from expanding, as well as save thousands of lives. The measure was desperately needed as Kyiv had been running low on all weapons types, from small arms to air defense, and could lose the war within weeks. The US resolve to back Ukraine will extend its window to fight and keep the negotiating table at bay.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by TASS. It's a bad day for anyone who believes that Ukraine can hold its own on the battlefield and inflict damage on Russia. The military aid to Kyiv will only enrich the US, ruin Ukraine, and result in more casualties. Moreover, allowing Washington to confiscate seized Russian assets and transfer the funds to Kyiv will worsen the crisis and risk, leading to an unprecedented escalation in the region.
  • Republican narrative, as provided by The Hill. This multi-billion-dollar aid package is a sellout of America. It's despicable that the US is doing nothing to secure the US-Mexico border while Democrats have been incessantly voting to spend Us money on foreign wars. For refusing to toe the party line and taking the aid to a vote on Saturday, for his betrayal and disloyalty, House Speaker Mike Johnson will undoubtedly pay a hefty price.
  • Democratic narrative, as provided by CNN. Despite facing a right-wing rebellion, Johnson cleared away the biggest hurdle to Biden's funding request for Ukraine, which is struggling to stay afloat amid dwindling military supplies. Had the US lawmakers turned their backs on Kyiv on Saturday, the consequences could have been devastating. The Russia-Ukraine war is a global threat to the US' security, which Washington can't afford to shrug off.

Predictions