Biden signs Ukraine military aid bill into law, $1 billion arms shipment imminent

NEWS WIRES

24 April 2024 at 0:59 pm·1-min read

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed legislation authorizing $61 billion in military aid for Ukraine, with the Pentagon quickly announcing a new $1 billion package headed for Kyiv, featuring desperately needed air defense and artillery munitions.

The legislation – which also includes aid for Israel and Taiwan and a potential ban on TikTok – comes after months of delay that saw Ukrainian forces run short of ammunition and suffer battlefield setbacks.

"I just signed into law the national security package that was passed by the House of Representatives this weekend, and by the Senate yesterday," Biden told reporters, saying he is "making sure the shipments start right away, in the next few hours."

"It's going to make America safer, it's going to make the world safer and it continues American leadership in the world and everyone knows it," he said of the legislation.

"It gives vital support to America's partners so they can defend themselves against threats to their sovereignty and to the lives and freedoms of their citizens."

The Pentagon quickly announced a $1 billion package for Kyiv using the new funding, including air defense munitions, artillery rounds, ammunition for HIMARS precision rocket launchers, anti-tank weapons and armored vehicles.

Lengthy debate

(AFP)

Business Insider
Ukraine highlights Russia's 'line of hell.' Claim of dozens of tanks and military vehicles destroyed on one sector of the Donetsk front.
Fighting has intensified in the Donetsk region in recent months as Russia pushes to take more ground around Avdiivka.
The Telegraph
The ‘Dark Fleet’ powering Putin’s Ukraine war machine is out of hand. It’s time to act
“Shipping – it’s one damned thing after another,” the editor of Lloyds’ List wrote last week.
The Telegraph
US shared ‘gobsmacking’ Covid lab leak file with UK
The US shared “gobsmacking” evidence with Britain at the height of the Covid pandemic suggesting a “high likelihood” that the virus had leaked from a Chinese lab, The Telegraph can reveal.
The Telegraph
The far-Left mob has seized control of Britain’s streets – and its borders
At best, Britain’s asylum system is inefficient and ineffectual. At worst – and I fear this is probably closer to the truth – it is incredibly dangerous, studiously working against the country’s best interests from economic flourishing to public safety.
Evening Standard
Watch: Awkward moment defeated Susan Hall 'left hanging' as she tries to shake Sadiq Khan's hand
Mayor Khan fails to thank or pay tribute to Susan Hall in his victory speech
The Telegraph
‘We call it the valley of death’: inside Britain’s battle to rearm itself
Described as an Apache gunship that fits in the back of your car, the British-made Hydra drone has the potential to be a game-changer on the battlefield.
The Telegraph
SNP activist to run against John Swinney for party leadership
An SNP activist is planning to ruin John Swinney’s coronation as first minister by running against him to become party leader.
Euronews
Russia blames 'hostile' Baltic countries for split in relations
Moscow vowed to respond to what it called confrontational actions by Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia with asymmetric measures.
Wales Online
DWP review warning issued to people on State Pension, PIP and Universal Credit
During the 2024/25 financial year, the Department for Work and Pensions will measure a sample of claims from five specific benefits and the State Pension
The Telegraph
Ireland’s blind hatred of Brexit has destroyed its borders. Starmer may do the same to ours
In 2017, when Britain began its disengagement talks with the EU, Ireland laid down two inviolable principles. First, no border: not so much as a matchstick to mark where the EU’s customs territory began. Second, no direct talks between the London and Dublin. If the Brits had anything to say, they should talk to Michel Barnier.
Evening Standard
London mayoral election: Results from council polls suggest Ulez could still be problem for Sadiq Khan
The Conservatives won council by-elections in Hillingdon, Sutton and Wandsworth
The Telegraph
How Mark Carney handed Labour the ultimate prize
When a Tory donor met Mark Carney for the first time at a glitzy business event in New York, he was distinctly impressed.
The Telegraph
China is now engaged in open hybrid warfare against the West
Conflict rages in Gaza and Ukraine, and tensions heighten over Taiwan. In Beijing, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has just held difficult talks with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi. Despite Xi Jinping’s statement at a joint press conference that the US and China should “seek common ground … rather than engage in vicious competition”, efforts at detente seem to have been fruitless.
Business Insider
9 of Ukraine's deadliest strikes that killed scores of Russians with a single blow — US HIMARS and ATACMS take a toll
From the sinking of the missile cruiser Moskva to several precison HIMARS strikes, these are Russia's deadliest moments in Ukraine.
My London
Mayor elections: Fall of Sadiq Khan or Susan Hall to buck Tory trend - what Londoners are saying about London mayoral elections
Counting is well underway as the results of the London mayoral elections 2024 are set to be revealed
The Daily Beast
The Dramatic Meeting Now Stalling Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Case
Photo Illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast/Getty Images/Everett CollectionAn off-hand remark—or a terribly misconstrued one—by a federal prosecutor at a private meeting with a defense attorney in Donald Trump’s classified documents case may add yet another delay to the former president’s already severely delayed trial.U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon has already earned a reputation for making bizarre rulings that favor the man who appointed her to the bench, pushing back a trial th
The Telegraph
SAS faces perfect storm of overstretched troops and shrinking talent pool
The Special Air Service Regiment is facing a perfect storm of being operationally overstretched while recruiting from a shrinking talent pool, senior defence sources have claimed.
The Telegraph
Armenia a ‘big loser of war in Ukraine’ thanks to Kremlin-backed Azerbaijan
Vladimir Shahinyan is a proud Armenian but he says he has been betrayed.
The New York Times
Gallows Humor and Talk of Escape: Trump’s Possible Return Rattles Capital
WASHINGTON — It has become the topic of the season at Washington dinner parties and receptions. Where would you go if it really happens? Portugal, says a former member of Congress. Australia, says a former agency director. Canada, says a Biden administration official. France, says a liberal columnist. Poland, says a former investigator. They’re joking. Sort of. At least in most cases. It’s a gallows humor with a dark edge. Much of official Washington is bracing for the possibility that former Pr
The Telegraph
Milei is already proving the Left-wing economic establishment wrong
Argentina has historically been a country of failed governments, economic collapses, and debt defaults. Yet incredibly there are signs that – against all the odds – the bold, free market reforms of its libertarian President Javier Milei are beginning to work.

Lengthy debate

Latest stories