+
Login Register
Blog Post

Ukraine war live updates: U.S. Senate to vote on foreign aid bill; Ukraine says Russia buying Starlink terminals through 'Arab countries'

  • by Ema Timahe

U.S. Senators are expected to hold a final vote early Tuesday on a $95 billion aid package that would provide funds for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. While passage in the Democratic-led body is likely, the contentious bill will face a greater hurdle ahead in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. House Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday said the bill had failed to include provisions on U.S. border security, an issue Republican lawmakers have said is crucial to winning their support. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s main military intelligence agency said Tuesday that Russia was purchasing SpaceX-made Starlink terminals through “Arab countries.” On Sunday, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk responded to the agency’s prior claim that Russian forces were using Starlink in occupied areas. “To the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia,” Musk said. The U.S. Senate is expected to hold a final vote on Tuesday on a $95 billion aid package that would provide funds for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but its future remains uncertain amid intense lawmaker opposition. A procedural vote passed in the Senate late on Monday, advancing the bill to the final hurdle in the Democrat-controlled legislature, where it is expected to pass. The package must also be approved in the Republican-led House of Representatives, which appears less likely. The contentious security aid bill has been stuck in political limbo for months. Many lawmakers, including U.S. President Joe Biden, insist it is crucial to uphold U.S. international obligations and protect domestic security. The package includes a provision of $61 billion for Ukraine, which Ukrainian officials say is sorely needed for the war effort against Russia. The bill faces continued opposition from many Republicans, who have pushed for the inclusion of funding for domestic security on the southern border. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson on Monday said that the latest iteration of the bill had failed to meet those demands, adding it “should have gone back to the drawing board... to include real border security provisions that would actually held end the ongoing catastrophe.” “Instead, the Senate’s foreign aid bill is silent on the most pressing issue facing our country,” he said in a statement, adding that: “The House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters.”

+