Following months of political unrest that put the bill in the House of Representatives ‘ way, the Senate overwhelmingly approved a$ 95.3 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan on April 23, 2024. About$ 61 billion of this aid package will be spent on Ukraine, while$ 26 billion will go to Israel. Another$ 8 billion is designated for Taiwan.
Joe Biden, the president, has promised to pass the legislation in the coming weeks.
The House approved the bill on April 20 with a unique republican coalition that voted 311- 112 in favor of assistance to Ukraine, while the Senate voted for the support package with a 79- 18 vote delayed on Tuesday evening.
” Today’s output still confirms another thing we’ve stressed from the beginning of this Congress”, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, said on April 23, before thanking House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, for moving the policy along. ” In divided state, the only way to ever get things done is bipartisanship”.
With the new policy, UA military items could be moved to Ukraine in a matter of time.
In early April 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy laid out the stakes for the US support, saying,” If the Congress does n’t help Ukraine, Ukraine will lose the war”. In recent months, Russia has increased its bombing of Ukraine, and the lines between Russia and Ukraine have n’t changed much.
After Iran’s device weapon assault on Israel on April 14, 2024, strain increased on politicians to complete the aid package.
Since Soviet forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the US has provided the most money to the region. Since then, the US has sent Ukraine roughly$ 113 billion in a combination of income, military supplies and equipment, as well as meals and other humanitarian products.
As an expert on Eastern Europe, I believe there are a few crucial factors why the US has a lot at stake in supporting Ukraine.
Republican disagree on the support to Ukraine.
Johnson had put off a vote on the Ukraine international aid costs in the House of Representatives since February 2024 for a few factors. One main factor was fighting between Republican, who hold a slender majority in the House.
Some moderate Republican lawmakers pushed for a vote on the international aid package while others, hard-right Republicans, demanded a costs that prioritized what they claimed was American interests, with a focus on home US issues.
A risk that other Republicans would try to remove Johnson from his management position was another issue.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a Republican who filed a movement on March 22, 2024, and Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky called on Johnson to withdraw. This action could lead to Johnson being removed from his House leadership position.
After some reports, Johnson apparently accepted the idea that supporting the policy was the best course of action and engaged with Democrats from all sides to assist him in passing the regulations.
Putin’s difficulties in implementing Ukraine help.
Ukraine was rationing weapons and products as the House was stumbling on a ballot. This, in turn, provided an opportunity for Russia to improve its army.
Putin had time to work on his plans to purchase nuclear weapons from Iran due to Ukraine’s delays in foreign aid. John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, expressed concern in premature January 2024 that Russia was on the verge of acquiring short-range nuclear arms from Iran.
Russia currently purchases projectile missiles from North Korea and drones from Iran.
Due to a lack of weapons, US national security director Jake Sullivan pointed out in February that Ukrainian forces had lost a significant area of resistance in the south of Ukraine, called Avdiivka, to Russia.
Without US assistance, Ukraine may have a proper disadvantage that might result in Russia winning the war. That was cause Russia to increase its challenges to NATO allies.
Europe must contend with China for the US.
There are other justifications for why so many researchers believe it aids US support for Ukraine. China’s growing global energy is one factor.
Time before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Chinese and Russian officials announced a military and political alliance. On April 9, 2024, they announced that they wanted to find ways to expand their mutual surveillance efforts in Asia and Europe.
As noted by US political and military officials, it is obvious that supporting Ukraine and imposing sanctions on Russia would help China exert greater influence and influence over the world.
Russia’s potential decline in Ukraine is” a punishment in the northern Pacific and immediately informs partners,” according to Navy Admiral Samuel J. Paparo in February 2024.
The captain claimed that China is considering the invasion of Ukraine for its own goals in an effort to “effect a brief, strong issue that presents a fait accompli to all of the planet.” He called for the US to continue to fund Ukraine’s conflict.
The US needs long-standing allies in Europe to fight China, but deterrent just works as well as the force’s size.
This process and how it relates to China were just explained by Ely Ratner, the US assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs:” We believe punishment is real and punishment is powerful, and we’re working every day to keep it that way.”
Foreign aid benefits US arms industry
Most of America’s military assistance to Ukraine comes from existing US stocks of ammunition and weapons. More than one-third of the$ 61 billion budget is dedicated to restocking the US military’s weapons and ammunition systems, with$ 23 billion going toward that purpose.
A record-high$ 886 billion in spending will be authorized from July 2023 through June 2024 under Biden’s US defense policy bill signed in December 2023. This includes a 5.2 % pay raise for troops,$ 11.5 billion in support of initiatives to help deter China and$ 800 million to support Ukraine’s counteroffensive war.
But it also allows for the purchasing of new ships, aircraft and other types of ammunition. That means a promising start to 2024 for defense stocks, as the military will likely look to restock supplies shipped to Ukraine in order to boost defense contractors ‘ revenues.
Americans continue to back the aid provided by Ukraine
About half of Republicans claimed in December 2023 that the US is giving Ukraine too much money, but the majority of Americans still support the country.
Politicians may not always follow public opinion, but there are compelling arguments to continue funding Ukraine in the United States ‘ best interests.
Tatsiana Kulakevich, both a University of South Florida, is an associate professor of instruction in the School of Interdisciplinary Global Studies and an affiliate professor at the Institute for Russian, European, and Eurasian Studies.
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