U.S. Senate moves toward final vote on aid to Ukraine

The US Senate voted to end debate on the Ukraine aid bill, Ukraine's Ambassador to Washington Oksana Markarova said on Tuesday night, UNN reports.

The next step was the adoption of a motion to close the debate on the updated text of HR 815 (the legislative instrument of the National Security Act of 2024), which was supported by 66 senators (60 required), with 33 senators voting against

Details

According to Reuters, on Monday, the Democratic-led U.S. Senate came close to finalizing a $95.34 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan amid growing doubts about the fate of the law in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

The lawmakers voted 66-33, according to the newspaper, to "clear the last procedural hurdle before final consideration of the bill." Senate leaders expected a vote on approval sometime Wednesday.

But the bill could face major difficulties in the House of Representatives, where Speaker Mike Johnson has said his Republican majority wants conservative provisions to address the record level of migrant flow across the US-Mexico border.

"Since the Senate did not receive any change in border policy, the House will have to continue to work on these important issues of its own accord," Johnson said in a statement released just before the Senate vote on Monday.

"America deserves better than the status quo of the Senate," said Johnson, who had previously suggested that the House might split the legislation into separate bills.

Addendum

The bill includes $61 billion for Ukraine, $14 billion for Israel in its war against Hamas, and $4.83 billion to support partners in the Indo-Pacific, including Taiwan, and to deter Chinese aggression.

It also provides $9.15 billion in humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza, the West Bank, Ukraine and other conflict zones around the world.