Ukraine cheers House approval of military aid

Peter Weber, The Week US
·1 min read
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U.S. and Ukraine flags fly outside U.S. Capitol as House votes on aid.
U.S. and Ukraine flags fly outside U.S. Capitol as House votes on aid.

What happened

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday thanked the U.S. House for passing long-delayed military aid. Saturday's 311-112 vote, with all 112 no votes coming from Republicans, joined $60.8 billion for Ukraine with $17 billion for Israel and $8 billion for Indo-Pacific allies in a $95 billion package approved in separate parts.

Who said what

The U.S. weapons give Ukraine's military a real "chance of victory" and "break the plans of Russia" for an expected "full-scale offensive" in coming weeks, Zelenskyy told NBC News on Sunday. President Joe Biden thanked "both parties in the House" for coming together to pass the "urgently needed national security legislation."

The commentary

The House approved "more than bullets and bombs" for a "battered and bloodied" Ukraine, The New York Times said. "It offered something equally important: hope." Ukraine is grateful, but after six months of rationed munitions and Russian gains, "frankly speaking, it's too late and it's not enough," National University of Kyiv political scientist Olexiy Haran told The Associated Press.

What next?

The Senate will vote on the package Tuesday and Biden said he will sign it immediately. Some of the "ready to go" weapons will reach the battlefield in "less than a week," a U.S. official told The Washington Post. Ukraine "may suffer additional setbacks" as Russia pushes to "exploit the closing window" of Kyiv's shortages, the Institute for the Study of War said, but Ukraine can "blunt" Russia's offensive if the aid "arrives promptly."