Biden seeks $106B for Ukraine, Israel, border with Mexico

President Joe Biden has requested urgent military aid for Ukraine and Israel in a massive $106 billion security package, but he faces a tough battle to get it through a paralysed US Congress.

Biden's demand came on Friday, one day after he drew a direct link between the Hamas raid on Israel and Russian President Vladimir Putin's offensive in Ukraine to convince Americans that the United States must show global leadership.

The 80-year-old Democrat argued in an Oval Office speech that the huge sums involved — a total of $105.85 billion, including $61 billion in military aid for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel — would secure US interests for generations.

But Biden's request comes as the US House of Representatives remains in chaos, with Republicans, who hold a narrow majority, in their worst meltdown in decades and unable to elect a speaker for the past 17 days.

"The world is watching, and the American people rightly expect their leaders to come together and deliver on these priorities," White House Office of Management and Budget director Shalanda Young said in a letter to Congress.

"I urge Congress to address them as part of a comprehensive, bipartisan agreement in the weeks ahead."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who visited Washington in September to seek more military aid against Russia, said he was "grateful" to Biden for proposing the aid.

'Chaos'

Biden's mega aid package throws an olive branch to Republicans in the form of $14 billion in funding for the migration crisis at the southern border with Mexico, including $6.4 billion for security — a central concern for the right-wing party.

The package also includes $7 billion for countering China and strengthening allies in the Asia-Pacific region, and over $9 billion for humanitarian assistance for Gaza, Ukraine and Israel.

Most importantly, however, the huge funding ask is an attempt to bolster waning support for Ukraine by linking it with funding for Israel — which does have widespread bipartisan backing.

Whether Republicans can set aside their squabbling and choose a speaker so that Biden's request can even get a hearing remains unclear.

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Source: TRT