US Congress Approves 95 Billion USD Aid Package for Ukraine and Taiwan for Israel's Sake
After 6 months of waiting for American aid, Israel came to the rescue of Ukraine and Taiwan. More precisely, the massive Iranian attack on the night of 13/14 April. It was out of the question not to support Israel, which for the first time in its history was hit by an external threat.
Global Tension Points: Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel
The world is currently debating whether the Third World War has started or not, or at least whether a major war is likely to break out soon, if not now. Since the beginning of 2022, Ukraine has been at the centre of the debate. It was important for the Western world to stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The fear that if Russia could not be stopped, the Russian military power would crush many European countries such as Romania, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and other European countries, and that the conditions of the Second World War would occur, was the fearful dream of the capitals of Eastern Europe. For this reason, military aid to Ukraine began to be seen as Europe's aid to itself. However, without the United States encouraging Ukraine to resist Russia, and despite the pioneering efforts of the British, the impossibility of the European military logistics infrastructure to support the Ukrainian Army on the front line on its own in the short term and the lack of capacity became evident. For this reason, Washington has always remained the main actor in the aid to Ukraine and in the course of this war. On the other hand, the delays in aid in recent months and the fact that the vote in Congress could not be held for 6 months started to strengthen the perception that Ukraine was doomed.
In Israel, the second leg of the World War III scenarios, the situation was a little different. After 7 October, President Joe Biden promised unwavering support to Israel in its fight against the Hamas terrorist organisation. Since both Democrats and Republicans in American politics pursue a pro-Israel policy, this pledge of support was expected. Since Truman, who strongly supported the establishment of Israel at the UN General Assembly on 29 November 1947, it has been an obligatory duty for every American President to stand by Israel and support this country in every situation and condition.
In the Pacific region, the US, together with its allies in the region, continues to pursue a power-building strategy against China in line with its containment policy. Taiwan, which is separated from China, is not only an outpost of the US in the Asia-Pacific region, but also a knife that can cut China's jugular vein. The US, which holds the handle of the knife, fervently supports Taiwan's struggle to maintain its existence as an independent state vis-à-vis China, at the expense of disturbing China. Putting obstacles in the way of Xi's 'one China' policy means that the US will protect not only Taiwan, but also the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, South Korea, Japan and other countries that the US tied to itself through regional alliances after the Second World War.
Undoubtedly, supporting Ukraine-Israel and Taiwan means that some of the money collected from American taxpayers will be transferred to these three countries and military aid will be provided. Although it is seen as a necessity for the highest American interests and the continuation of the US global hegemony, the blockade imposed by the members of the US House of Representatives, who say "America First", has been tying President Biden's hands for the last six months. The American Congress seemed to have turned a deaf ear to the needs of the Ukrainian Army on the Ukrainian front, which was understood to be unable to withstand the Russians on the Ukrainian front, let alone a counter-attack, and would suffer additional territorial losses. The emergence of the image of a Washington incapable of supporting Ukraine against the Russians today was leading to assessments that the Taiwanese would also be left in the middle in a possible Taiwan-China war in the future.
US Congress Approves 95 Billion USD Aid Package
Israel came to the rescue of these two countries. More precisely, Iran's massive attack on the night of 13/14 April with ballistic and cruise missiles and kamikaze drones. It was out of the question not to support Israel, which was hit by an external threat for the first time in its history, and especially not to delay the upgrading of its air defence weapons and systems. The Ukrainian population could be left defenceless against Russian missiles, but not the territory of Israel. In Congress, aid to these three countries was organised into a single package. The aid to Israel had to be immediate. It was no longer possible at this stage to separate aid to Ukraine and Taiwan.
Thus, thanks to Israel, the blockage of the aid package in Congress was broken. After a delay of six months, the critical US military aid is once again on its way to Ukraine. An 'aid coalition' - Reaganite Republicans and Trumanite Democrats - passed the aid package yesterday by 311 votes to 112. It now seems likely that the Senate will quickly adopt the proposed resolution on this package and that it will be signed by US President Joe Biden.
The US House of Representatives has approved a total of 95 billion dollars in aid to these three countries, including Israel. The aid package paves the way for $60.8 billion in aid to Ukraine, $24.4 billion to Israel and $8.1 billion to Taiwan. Of the $26.4 billion in aid to Israel, $4 billion will go towards upgrading the Iron Dome and replacing the inventory of TAMIR missiles used by the system.
Are Ukraine's Concerns Allayed?
Prior to the vote in the House of Representatives, the Ukrainian government was worried, despite the Israeli administration's resolute expectation. The Ukrainians, who were fighting on the front line in defence of their country, were counting on American aid, but they could not understand the blocking of this aid. Hadn't they been encouraged to fight this war by the United States? Why was the US now letting them down? Why was the US, which had unquestioningly sided with Israel, not siding with the Ukrainians?
The vote in the House of Representatives has, to varying degrees, allayed the concerns of the Ukrainian people and leadership, in a sense stopping the hemorrhaging of US credibility. "Ukraine has not yet disappeared" (the opening words of the Ukrainian national anthem) can now be recited with more force. The belief that the Biden administration can reverse the perception that Ukraine is doomed has begun to grow again. The Ukrainian army will be reinforced with a sufficient number of artillery shells (especially the multinational initiative spearheaded by the Czech Republic). The aim is to prevent the expected Russian ground offensive. Supporting Ukraine with a sufficient number of new air defence systems (including a German-led initiative) could go some way towards limiting the damage caused by Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure and cities. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Army, with the F-16 fighter jets it is receiving, and its increased capacity to use long-range weapons, could further weaken Russian bases, supply lines and even Russian control of Crimea. The package approved by Congress also includes the delivery of a long-range (186 miles) version of the Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) to Ukraine. The aid package is expected to mobilise the US capacity to deploy more weapons to the Ukrainian front.
Conclusion
The US has interests and pressures regarding criticism of Israel, as well as interests and pressures regarding Ukraine, whose foreign policy is moving against Russia, and Taiwan, where the fear of China is growing. With the $95 billion aid package, an important step has been successfully taken in a process that will particularly benefit Israel. Netanyahu was told 'you can continue'. Under the current memorandum of understanding, the annual US aid to Israel amounts to $3.8 billion per year, including $3.3 billion for general military needs and half a billion for joint ventures in air defence alone.
With the approval of the package, Zelensky, who felt Putin breathing down his neck, had the opportunity to take a deep breath. Zelensky, who seems to have grasped the impossibility of removing the Russian Army from its current positions in the near future, will try to stall the Russians on the one hand, and on the other hand, with a strong stance on the front line, to guarantee the approval of a 'membership' roadmap in favour of his country at the NATO summit to be held in July.
