US House a bill

By Anna Ringle

Washington (dpa) — The US House of Representatives on Thursday approved a wide-ranging package of aid for Ukraine and sanctions on Russia while also reaffirming a commitment to the NATO alliance.

The chamber passed the bill, which was introduced by the Democrats, by 226 votes to 195, with the help of almost 20 votes from President Donald Trump’s Republican Party.

This increases pressure on Trump, who recently voiced extremely critical views of NATO and had not clearly sided with Ukraine, which was attacked by Russia in February 2022.

The bill still needs approval from the Senate, the other congressional chamber. It will then be sent to Trump to sign, though he could veto it.

US House a bill

The vote puts Trump in a delicate position because, if he vetoes it, he would be opposing numerous colleagues in his party. Recently, Republicans have openly opposed some White House policies just a few months ahead of the November congressional midterm elections when the president’s party aims to defend its wafer-thin majorities in both chambers.

Russia urged to withdraw from Ukraine

The bill says the US condemns Russian war crimes in the strongest possible terms. It calls for Russia to immediately and unconditionally withdraw all armed forces from Ukrainian territory including Crimea and the areas of Donetsk and Luhansk in the south-east of the country known as the Donbas.

Any negotiations must also be based on Ukraine’s sovereignty and must not be dictated by Russia, it says.

US House a bill

The bill provides for a wide range of possible sanctions targeting Russian banks, the energy sector and also senior politicians such as President Vladimir Putin. Loans are also to be made available for Ukraine to finance its military.

House of Representatives: NATO is a bulwark

Lawmakers explicitly reaffirmed their commitment to NATO as a defensive alliance and specifically to Article 5 of the NATO treaty. This states that an attack on one alliance member is considered an attack on all.

The US commitment to Article 5 strengthens NATO’s deterrence as a bulwark against opponents such as Russia, China and Iran who wanted to expand their influence, the bill’s text says.

Most recently, the White House in particular had struck a critical tone towards NATO. Trump reproached Germany and other NATO countries for not helping secure the Strait of Hormuz in the Iran war. He threatened that people would remember that and “never forget.”