As of: February 16, 2024, 5:06 a.m
By: Sonja Thomaser
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The billion-dollar aid package for Ukraine and Israel is before the House of Representatives.
The result of the vote is completely open.
Update from February 14th, 10:48 a.m.:
The already narrow majority of Republicans in the US House of Representatives has shrunk further after a special election in the New York constituency for one seat in the House of Representatives.
Democrat Tom Suozzi won the former Republican seat of George Santos against his Republican competitor Mazi Pilip.
With the Democrats gaining a seat in the House of Representatives, the balance of power between the two parties shifts slightly.
Before this election, the Republicans had 219 seats and the Democrats 212, according to the website of the US House of Representatives.
Republicans want to block vote on Ukraine aid in the House of Representatives
Update from February 14th, 10:25 a.m.:
“Bring it to the vote: immediately, immediately”: With these words, US President Joe Biden addressed the chairman of the US House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson.
After the Senate approved new aid to Ukraine, its release now depends on the MPs in Johnson's parliamentary chamber.
But there might not even be a vote there.
In his role, Chairman Johnson largely has control over which legislative proposals are actually voted on in his chamber.
Johnson has already indicated that he has no plans to put the Senate-passed bill to a vote in the House of Representatives any time soon.
Johnson is a loyal ally of Donald Trump and wants to prevent Biden from achieving a bipartisan success in the election year.
There is a parliamentary trick to get around it.
And that's exactly what Democrats in the House of Representatives are currently considering.
But the matter is complicated, and the Democrats would have to get several Republicans in the chamber on their side.
Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives, swings the gavel.
© dpa
Zelensky is hoping for a positive vote in the House of Representatives
Update from February 13th, 10:13 p.m.:
After the US Senate approved new aid to Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is hoping for a positive vote in the second chamber of parliament in Washington.
“The next step is the vote in the House of Representatives,” Zelensky said in his evening video address on Tuesday.
He was relying on the same “morally strong decision” there, as he said.
“It will pay off for our common security,” he appealed to US lawmakers.
The current conflict is not just about Ukraine, but about all countries whose independence could be threatened by Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin never wanted to limit himself to Ukraine, “his goals are much broader,” said Zelensky in Kiev.
“Solidarity in defense is all the more necessary.”
Update from February 13th, 3:45 p.m.:
US aid to Ukraine has cleared the first hurdle in the Senate - the draft now goes to the other chamber of parliament, the House of Representatives.
It is completely unclear whether the package will get through there.
The Republicans have a narrow majority in the House of Representatives, and representatives from the right-wing fringe of the party have long been opposing further US aid to Ukraine.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj has already thanked the US Senate for approving the aid package.
“For us in Ukraine, continued US support helps save lives from Russian terror,” he wrote on the X (formerly Twitter) platform.
“American assistance brings a just peace in Ukraine closer and restores global stability,” he added.
US Senate votes for multi-billion dollar Ukraine package
Update from February 13th, 1:25 p.m.:
The aid package that the Senate passed includes around 60 billion US dollars (almost 56 billion euros) in aid for Ukraine, the majority of which is for military support.
This is roughly the extent that Biden originally requested.
The bill also includes $14 billion for Israel and billions in aid for Taiwan and other Indo-Pacific partners.
In order to make progress after months of standstill, funds for border security were excluded from the package.
Migration is the major controversial issue between Democrats and Republicans.
Update from February 13th, 1:10 p.m.:
The US Senate has now voted for the billion-dollar aid package for Ukraine, which was attacked by Russia.
After weeks of negotiations, the Chamber of Parliament passed a corresponding bill on Tuesday morning (local time), which is now going to the House of Representatives.
However, it is completely unclear whether the package will pass in the other chamber of Congress.
US House of Representatives rejects aid package for Ukraine
First report from February 13th:
Washington DC - The Republican-dominated US House of Representatives does not want to approve the Senate's current bill for new aid to Ukraine and Israel.
According to Chairman Mike Johnson on Monday (Feb. 12), the bill does not include "the most pressing issue facing our country" - securing the U.S. border with Mexico.
The Senate, for its part, could vote on the aid package as early as Tuesday (February 13) - approval is considered likely.
The Republicans in the House of Representatives have made it clear from the beginning “that any so-called national security amendment must recognize that national security begins at our own border,” explained Johnson, referring to the border with Mexico.
Legislative package with military aid worth $95 billion
The legislative package ready for vote in the Senate with a total volume of 95 billion dollars (88 billion euros) contains military aid for Ukraine worth around 60 billion dollars.
Israel is to be supported with 14 billion dollars in the fight against the Islamist Hamas, and further funds are earmarked for the US ally Taiwan, among others.
Money for securing the US border with Mexico is not included.
The opposition Republicans have been blocking the release of further billions in aid for Ukraine for months.
Many right-wing Republican hardliners are against new aid to Ukraine.
The Republicans, who make up the majority in the House of Representatives, are demanding a new, strict migration policy in return for accepting the aid package.
Original package with money for border security already rejected
Last Wednesday, a legislative package with a total volume of $118 billion failed in the Senate, which, in addition to aid to Ukraine and funds for Israel, also contained more money for securing the US border with Mexico.
Linking foreign aid to the issue of US border security was originally a concession from the Democrats to the Republicans.
However, former US President Donald Trump, who is seeking another term in office, called for the bill to be rejected because he wants to use border policy as an election issue.
The Democrats then decided to introduce a separate bill with aid for Ukraine and Israel.
This found enough support among Republicans to pass in the Democratic-controlled Senate, which it will most likely pass in the vote likely to take place on Tuesday.
However, the House of Representatives still has to approve it, which, according to Johnson, will not happen.
(so with afp)