 "US House speaker Mike Johnson speaks with reporters to discuss his proposal of sending crucial bipartisan support to aid Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan after weeks of inaction, at the Capitol in Washington. AP")
Amid global tensions and strategic concerns, US House Republicans, on Wednesday, released the text of three bills that would provide aid for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific region. The bills aim at providing military aid to its allies, replenishing US weapons systems, and giving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza.
The package, which totals $95.3 billion (Rs 7.59 lakh crore) in spending, matches the total that the US Senate passed in mid-February. But there are also a few differences with the Senate bill to win over some US House conservatives.
We take a look at what is included in the bills.
Ukraine
The aid to support Ukraine totals about $61 billion (Rs 5.09 lakh crore). Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee said that more than a third of that amount would be dedicated to replenishing weapons and ammunition systems for the US military.
The overall amount of money provided to Ukraine for the purchase of weapons from the US is roughly the same in the House and Senate bills — $13.8 billion (Rs 1.15 lakh crore).
The main difference between the two packages is that the House bill provides more than $9 billion (Rs 7,51,70 crore) in economic assistance to Ukraine in the form of “forgivable loans.” The Senate bill included no such provision seeking repayment.
The president would be authorised to set the terms of the loan to Ukraine and also be given the power to cancel it. The US Congress could override the cancellation but would have to generate enough votes to override a veto, a high bar considering how the two chambers are so evenly divided.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsJohnson, as he seeks GOP support for the package, noted that former US president Donald Trump has endorsed a “loan concept.”
He also noted that the House package includes a requirement for the Biden administration to provide a plan and a strategy to the US Congress for what it seeks to achieve in Ukraine. The plan would be required within 45 days of the bill being signed into law. House Republicans frequently complain that they have yet to see a strategy from Biden for winning the war.
The bill said the report from the administration must be a multiyear plan that spells out “specific and achievable objectives.” It also asked for an estimate of the resources required to achieve the US objectives and a description of the national security implications if the objectives are not met.
Israel
Aid in the legislation to support Israel and provide humanitarian relief to citizens of Gaza comes to more than $26 billion (Rs 2.17 lakh crore). The amount of money dedicated to replenishing Israel’s missile defence systems totals about $4 billion (Rs 3,34,01 crore) in the US House and Senate bills. An additional $2.4 billion (Rs 2,00,43 crore) for current US military operations in the regions is also the same in both bills.
Some conservatives have been critical of the aid for Gaza. At the end of the day, though, Johnson risked losing critical Democratic support for the package if Republicans had excluded it. The humanitarian assistance comes to more than $9 billion (Rs 7,51,50 crore) for Gaza, where millions of Palestinians face starvation, lack of clean water and disease outbreaks.
Indo-Pacific
The investments to counter China and ensure a strong deterrence in the region come to about $8 billion (Rs 6,68,02 crore). The overall amount of money and the investments in the two bills is about the same with a quarter of funds used to replenish weapons and ammunition systems that had been provided to Taiwan.
With inputs from AP