Aid finally set to flow as Senate clears $95.3 billion emergency bill

The package includes $60.8 billion for the Ukraine war effort, $26.4 billion for Israel and humanitarian aid to Gaza and other conflict zones and $8.1 billion to help Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific allies who face growing threats from China.

The measure would also authorize the seizure of an estimated $5 billion in frozen Russian assets to help pay for Ukraine assistance and toughen sanctions on Russia, Iran and China.

And it would force the divestiture of Chinese-owned TikTok or else ban the social media app in the U.S., and prohibit data brokers from selling Americans’ personal information to countries such as China, Russia, Iran and North Korea or organizations controlled by those governments.

But for Ukraine, in particular, the package comes as a godsend for thousands of weary troops still trying to hold off Russian forces after a February 2022 invasion.

Kyiv has been forced to ration its arms in recent weeks as it waited for Congress to clear the emergency spending bill, and the measure’s all but certain enactment, probably this week, will mean the arrival soon of sorely needed weapons.

The Pentagon told reporters Tuesday it could begin funneling weapons to Ukraine within days of the bill becoming law.

In the House, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., sought to make the package more palatable to restive Republicans by adding provisions to initial Senate legislation that included the seizure of frozen Russian assets and converting some of Ukraine’s economic aid into a loan.

Those tweaks helped persuade some reluctant GOP senators who opposed the measure in February to support it this week.

“It’s just so much easier to go back home and say ‘listen, we’re asking people to pay us back when they can, if they can. We’re also going after the bad guys’ assets,'” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who switched his position to back the measure. “This is just a much better package. It’s more robust for Israel. So it’s good.”

Democrats had long been united on Ukraine aid, but Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip led to some fissures among progressives as the death toll of Palestinians climbed to the tens of thousands.

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