On April 20, the US House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill on foreign aid for Ukraine.
311 members of the lower house of the US Congress voted in favor of the bill, 112 voted against, 7 did not vote, and one abstained.
Congressmen greeted the bill’s adoption with a standing ovation. Members of the House also began waving Ukrainian flags, which led to remarks, as it is forbidden to fly flags of foreign countries in Congress.
The draft will now be submitted to the Senate as an amendment to Senate International Assistance Bill HR.815, which was passed in February. This should simplify the procedure for approving the package in the Senate.
Senate Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that the Senate will vote on the aid to Ukraine bill on Tuesday, April 23, following its approval by the House of Representatives.
US President Joe Biden has promised to sign the bill into law.
The package, which includes support for Ukraine, was introduced by House Speaker Mike Johnson and provides about $61 billion in aid to Ukraine and its allies.
The Pentagon will need less than a week after all the procedures for passing the legislation are completed to deliver some of the weapons to Ukrainian troops.
U.S. officials said the Pentagon is ready to provide significant military assistance to Ukraine after the Senate approves the Ukraine aid bill and President Joe Biden signs it.
The Defense Department, which has warned that Ukraine would gradually cede to Russian invading troops and face staggering losses without urgent action on Capitol Hill, began putting together an aid package well in advance of the upcoming votes in an effort to speed up the process, these people said. According to the official, it will take less than a week before some of the weapons reach the battlefield.
The chairman of the US Senate Intelligence Committee, Mark Warner, has confirmed that the US will soon send long-range ATACMS to Ukraine. He said this on CBS News.
Commenting on the adoption of the bill on assistance to Ukraine by the House of Representatives, the senator expressed hope that after President Joe Biden’s signature, the weapons would be sent to Ukraine by the end of this week. Warner answered in the affirmative when asked if it was long-range artillery.
When asked if it was not just ammunition, he said, “ATACMS… I believe that for the last several months, the administration has been ready to prepare or provide ATACMS. It’s in this law.”
It was not immediately clear how extensive the package would be, although it will almost certainly include much-needed ammunition for the systems most relied upon by the Ukrainian military, including 155mm rounds used in NATO howitzers and medium-range rocket artillery.
It is also likely that the Pentagon will provide Ukraine with a fresh tranche of air defense equipment and ammunition, which is vital to combating Russia’s relentless campaign against Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure.
