The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed the annual defense policy bill, earmarking $858 billion (806 billion euros) for national defense and support of its allies, including NATO and Ukraine.
With 83 votes in favor and 11 against, the measure includes increased funding to help Ukraine fight Russian encroachment, as well as a new program to provide Taiwan with security assistance, as reported by ‘The Washington Post’.
Specifically, U.S. lawmakers earmarked more than $6 billion (€5.64 billion) for the European Deterrence Initiative, an increase of approximately €2 billion over last year.
They have also earmarked $800 million (€750 million) in security assistance funds specifically dedicated to Ukraine, although it will be granted under some conditions, such as reporting by the U.S. Pentagon to monitor assistance operations to Ukraine and to better track weapons sent to the front lines.
In addition, this new Defense budget increases the wage bill for members of the U.S. Armed Forces by 4.6 percent, and includes provisions to strengthen air power and ground warfare defense capabilities, as well as cybersecurity.
To move this bill forward, the Biden Administration has had to yield to a Republican request to rescind the military mandate for the COVID-19 vaccine, which had been in place since August 2021.
