US Senate approves $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan

The US Senate has approved a $95bn (£75bn) foreign aid package after months of political wrangling, though is expected to face uphill battle in the House of Representatives

The package passed on Wednesday is the result of months of negotiations as Republicans were divided and previously voted it down. It was approved by a vote of 70-29 as twenty-two Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, joined the Democrats to approve the legislation.

The bipartisan support came despite former President Donald Trump’s criticism of the bill for its lack of funding to secure the US-Mexico border.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said, “It’s certainly been years, perhaps decades, since the Senate passed a bill that so greatly impacts not just our national security, not just the security of our allies, but the security of Western democracy.”

Mr McConnell, a Kentucky senator, said in a statement following the vote: “Today, on the value of American leadership and strength, history will record that the Senate did not blink.”

Speaking on Tuesday afternoon from the White House, President Joe Biden urged House Republicans to pass the measure.

The package would allot 14 billion dollars to Israel and more than 9 billion to areas in conflict, including Gaza. It also provides support for Taiwan and other US partners in the Indo-Pacific region. But the bulk of the funds, about 60 billion, would go to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy understands the legislation still faces some obstacles. He said, “This was the first step. The next is in the House of Representatives and getting the votes of members there. We expect the decision to be positive.”

Democratic leadership has pressured the Republican Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, to bring the bill to the floor quickly.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson suggested in a statement on Monday night the new bill would not pass the Republican-controlled lower chamber of Congress without provisions for stemming the flow of migrants across the Mexican border.

“House Republicans were crystal clear from the very beginning of discussions that any so-called national security supplemental legislation must recognise that national security begins at our own border,” he said.

The war in Ukraine has broadly reached a stalemate, despite Russian attempts to advance in the eastern Donbas region and Ukrainian attacks in the south.

Officials in Kyiv want more military aid, especially new air defences, after President Vladimir Putin pledged to “intensify” the assault.