The US Senate passed a bill on military aid to Ukraine for almost $61 billion until the end of September 2025.
Bill No. 8035 was supported by 79 senators, against — 18. Now the bill must be signed by US President Joe Biden, who has assured that he will do so as soon as the document reaches his desk.
"I will sign this bill and appeal to the American people as soon as it lands on my desk tomorrow so that we can begin sending weapons and equipment to Ukraine this week," President Biden said in a statement.
The $60.8 billion aid includes $23.2 billion for replenishing American weapons stockpiles, $13.8 billion for Ukraineʼs purchase of weapons and equipment from American companies, $11.3 billion for current US operations, $9.5 billion for economic assistance to Ukraine and others costs associated with the consequences of the Russian invasion. The bill also includes $26.4 billion in aid to Israel and the civilian population of the Gaza Strip and $8.1 billion in aid to Taiwan.
The aid also includes money for grants and loans to purchase weapons from other countries, to help Ukrainian refugees, and for a demining program. Details of what exactly the money will be used for are in the Babel infographic.
Also, the document separately contains a call to the US president to transfer long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukraine as soon as possible. The president will decide this himself — the draft law contains a caveat that the head of state may not make such a decision if he believes that it will harm the national security of the United States. On April 22, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, after a conversation with Joe Biden, said that ATACMS missiles from the US would be "for Ukraine, all the dots are in place."
On the morning of April 24, after the vote, President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked senators from both parties for supporting the document, as well as President Biden and "all Americans."
“This vote reinforces Americaʼs role as a beacon of democracy and a leader of the free world... I look forward to the swift signing of the bill and the delivery of the next military aid package, which will match the determination I always feel in our negotiations. Ukraineʼs long-range capabilities, artillery and anti-aircraft defense are extremely important tools for the speedy restoration of a just peace," Zelensky wrote.
- On April 23, CNN wrote that most of the US military aid to Ukraine from the future package is already in warehouses in Germany and Poland. Officially, the US authorities did not report that the weapons for Ukraine are already in Europe, but the Pentagon said that they would send the weapons as soon as there was an order.
- According to Politico, the package will be larger than the last $300 million allocated in March as an emergency measure. The publicationʼs sources say that in addition to ammunition for artillery, missiles and air defense, the package will include a Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, an M113 armored personnel carrier and a Humvee. The Reuters agency writes that the USA is preparing a $1 billion package for Ukraine.