A “phew” of relief was heard from one end of the globe to the other. At a time when American parliamentarians validated a huge aid plan for Ukraine, kyiv was pleased to finally see its prayers answered. In Washington, Democrats even waved Ukrainian flags in the hemicycle. 20 minutes takes stock of this long-awaited text.
What does this help contain?
Long debated and postponed, the United States envelope reached around 61 billion dollars. A colossal figure but which also aims to make up for aid which had dried up, while the Republicans had blocked any new envelope for a year and a half. This time, the text was supported by both sides, with the exception of the most fervent supporters of Donald Trump. The support of House Republican Leader Mike Johnson was decisive. “To put it bluntly: I would rather send ammunition to Ukraine than send our boys to fight,” he pleaded, not without a certain emotion.
In detail, nearly 14 billion dollars are reserved to train, equip and pay Ukrainian soldiers. A little over 10 billion actually consists of a loan to support the energy and infrastructure sectors, but this debt can be erased. The majority of the envelope must in reality go to arms factories in the United States, in order to replenish the stocks of the American army, emptied by donations of arms and ammunition. Finally, the aid plan provides a legal component, allowing the Biden administration to confiscate and sell Russian assets to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine.
What were the reactions in kyiv and among Ukraine’s allies?
“The vital aid law passed today by the House of Representatives will prevent the war from spreading, save thousands and thousands of lives and help our two nations become stronger,” rejoiced Volodymyr Zelensky on X , saying he was “grateful” to American elected officials. “We will have something to defend ourselves with,” rejoices Oksana, a 50-year-old nurse, in the streets of kyiv. “We were looking forward to (the aid), it will save lives.” With the military equipment promised by the United States, “I think we will no longer cede territory and we will certainly not move back,” enthuses Dmytro, a 19-year-old hairdresser.
The head of German diplomacy Annalena Baerbock welcomed a “day of optimism for the security of Ukraine and Europe”. This aid marks “a decisive turning point”, believes the head of Italian diplomacy Antonio Tajani. For Charles Michel, President of the European Council, Washington “sends a clear message to the Kremlin” with the amount of this envelope. Joe Biden and Jens Stoltenberg, the head of NATO, also welcomed the Congressional vote.
How did Russia react?
For the Kremlin, American aid, which also contains a component for Israel and Taiwan, “will exacerbate global crises”. “Military aid to the kyiv regime is direct support for terrorist activities,” denounces Russian diplomatic spokesperson Maria Zakharova. The aid “will further enrich the United States of America and ruin Ukraine even more, killing even more Ukrainians because of the Kiev regime,” assured the spokesperson for the Russian presidency, Dmitry Peskov, quoted by the state news agency TASS.