Based on a World War II regulation, the US wants to facilitate the delivery of weapons to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries. After the Senate, the House of Representatives also passed a corresponding bill overnight.
The president is temporarily authorized until 2023 to loan or lease military equipment to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries affected by the Russian war of aggression. Certain formal requirements of the procedure must be suspended.
Biden still hasn’t signed the law
The US Congress had passed a similar loan and lease law in 1941, during World War II: this allowed the United States to supply armaments quickly and in large quantities to the Allies fighting the National Socialists.
A large bipartisan majority in the House of Representatives supported the proposed legislation. 417 deputies voted in favor, only ten against. US President Joe Biden has yet to sign the bill.
Billions in Congress
The US government is arming Ukraine on a massive scale to support the country in the war against Russia. Biden announced yesterday that he would ask Congress to approve an additional $33 billion (€31.4 billion). 20 billion of that should be used for military aid.
The US government had already launched several large support packages for Ukraine. Since the beginning of the war in late February, the US alone has promised or has provided the country with weapons and ammunition worth more than 3.7 billion US dollars (about 3.5 billion euros).