WASHINGTON: The Biden administration on Thursday asked Congress to provide more than $13 billion in emergency defense aid to Ukraine and an additional $8 billion for humanitarian support through the end of the year, another massive infusion of cash as the Russian invasion wears on and Ukraine pushes a counteroffensive against the Kremlin’s deeply entrenched forces.
The package includes $12 billion to replenish US federal disaster funds at home after a deadly climate season of heat and storms, and funds to bolster the enforcement at the Southern border with Mexico, including money to curb the flow of deadly fentanyl. All told, it’s a $40 billion package.
While the last such supplemental spending request from the White House for Ukraine funding was easily approved in 2022 despite reservations from Republicans, there’s a different dynamic this time.
A political divide on the issue has steadily grown, with the Republican-led House facing enormous pressure to demonstrate support for the party’s leader, Donald Trump, who has been very skeptical of the war. And American support for the effort has been slowly softening.
White House budget director Shalanda Young, in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, urged swift action to follow through on the US “commitment to the Ukrainian peoples’ defense of their homeland and to democracy around the world” as well as other needs.
The request was crafted with an eye to picking up support from Republicans, as well as Democrats, particularly with increased domestic funding around border issues — a top priority for the GOP. The Republicans have been been highly critical of the Biden administration’s approach to halting the flow of migrants crossing from Mexico.
Still, the price tag of $40 billion may be too much for Republicans who are fighting to slash, not raise, federal outlays. As a supplemental request, the package the White House is sending to Congress falls outside the budget caps both parties agreed to as part of the debt ceiling showdown earlier this year.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement there was strong bipartisan support in the US Senate.
“The latest request from the Biden administration shows America’s continued commitment to helping Americans here at home and our friends abroad,” he said. “We hope to join with our Republican colleagues this fall to avert an unnecessary government shutdown and fund this critical emergency supplemental request.”
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who has championed of support for Ukraine, was more subdued.
“I look forward to carefully reviewing the Administration’s request to make sure it is necessary and appropriate,” McConnell said in a statement, “to keep America safe, secure our borders, support our allies, and help communities rebuild after disasters.”
Sen. Marco Rubio released a statement urging Congress to swiftly pass critical funding for disaster relief programs while separately considering military aid for Ukraine.
President Joe Biden and his senior national security team have repeatedly said the United States will help Ukraine “as long as it takes” to oust Russia from its borders. Privately, administration officials have warned Ukrainian officials that there is a limit to the patience of a narrowly divided Congress — and American public — for the costs of a war with no clear end.
“For people who might be concerned the costs are getting too high, we’d ask them what the costs — not just in treasure but in blood, perhaps even American blood — could be if Putin subjugates Ukraine,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby said this week.
Support among the American public for providing Ukraine weaponry and direct economic assistance has softened with time. An AP-NORC poll conducted in January 2023 around the one-year mark of the conflict, found that 48 percent favored the US providing weapons to Ukraine, down from the 60 percent of US adults who were in favor sending Ukraine weapons in May 2022. While Democrats have generally been more supportive than Republicans of offering weaponry, their support dropped slightly from 71 percent to 63 percent in the same period. Republicans’ support dropped more, from 53 percent to 39 percent.
Dozens of Republicans in the House and some GOP senators have expressed reservations, and even voted against, spending more federal dollars for the war effort. Many of those Republicans are aligning with Trump’s objections to the US involvement overseas.
That means any final vote on Ukraine aid will likely need to rely on a hefty coalition led by Democrats from Biden’s party to ensure approval.
The funding includes money to counter Russian and Chinese influence elsewhere by bolstering the World Bank and providing aid to resist Russian-aligned Wagner forces in Africa. Domestically, there’s an additional $60 million to address increased wildfires that have erupted nationwide. And the request includes $4 billion for the Southern border, including $2.2 billion for border management and $766 million to stop the flow of fentanyl and provide prevention and recovery support. There is also $100 million earmarked for the Department of Labor to ramp up investigations of suspected child labor violations.
To ease passage, Congress would likely try to attach the package to a must-pass measure for broader government funding in the US that’s needed by Oct. 1 to prevent any shutdown in federal offices.
Members of Congress have repeatedly pressed Defense Department leaders on how closely the US is tracking its aid to Ukraine to ensure that it is not subject to fraud or ending up in the wrong hands. The Pentagon has said it has a “robust program” to track the aid as it crosses the border into Ukraine and to keep tabs on it once it is there, depending on the sensitivity of each weapons system.
Ukraine is pushing through with its ongoing counteroffensive, in an effort to dislodge the Kremlin’s forces from territory they’ve occupied since a full-scale invasion in February 2022. The counteroffensive has come up against heavily mined terrain and reinforced defensive fortifications.
The US has approved four rounds of aid to Ukraine in response to Russia’s invasion, totaling about $113 billion, with some of that money going toward replenishment of US military equipment that was sent to the frontlines. Congress approved the latest round of aid in December, totaling roughly $45 billion for Ukraine and NATO allies. While the package was designed to last through the end of the fiscal year in September, much depends upon events on the ground.
“We remain confident that we’ll be able to continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes,” said Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder.
There were questions in November about waning Republican support to approve the package, but it ultimately passed. Now, though, House Speaker McCarthy is facing pressure to impeach Biden over unproven claims of financial misconduct and it’s not clear whether a quick show of support for Ukraine could cause political damage in what’s expected to be a bruising 2024 reelection campaign.
Trump contends that American involvement has only drawn Russia closer to other adversarial states like China, and has condemned the tens of billions of dollars that the United States has provided in aid for Ukraine.
Biden asks Congress for $40 billion to support Ukraine, replenish US disaster aid and bolster border
https://arab.news/bs3w3
Biden asks Congress for $40 billion to support Ukraine, replenish US disaster aid and bolster border
- The funding includes money to counter Russian and Chinese influence elsewhere by bolstering the World Bank and providing aid to resist Russian-aligned Wagner forces in Africa
- The US has approved four rounds of aid to Ukraine in response to Russia’s invasion, totaling about $113 billion
Colombia protests Ecuador’s unilateral deportation of prisoners
- Colombia’s foreign ministry said the Ecuadoran government had ‘unilaterally’ initiated a ‘deportation process’ for Colombian nationals
- Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa announced in 2024 his intention to deport Colombian inmates to ease overcrowding in the country’s prisons
BOGOTA: Bogota lodged a protest with Ecuador on Friday for deporting a group of Colombian inmates without prior agreement, in what it called a violation of international law and an “unfriendly gesture” by its neighbor.
In a statement, Colombia’s foreign ministry said the Ecuadoran government had “unilaterally” initiated a “deportation process” for Colombian nationals, disregarding “respectful and repeated” requests to first establish a formal protocol.
“Colombia, using diplomatic channels, has expressed its strongest protest to the Government of Ecuador for this unfriendly gesture toward our country,” the statement added.
The ministry did not specify how many prisoners were sent back to Colombia, but denounced that under such conditions, their dignified treatment and the “protection of their rights” could not be guaranteed.
Earlier this week, local media reported that Ecuador planned to expel around 800 Colombians.
Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa announced in 2024 his intention to deport Colombian inmates to ease overcrowding in the country’s prisons. In April, small groups began being transferred to the border.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro opposed the move, saying that a joint plan was needed to safeguard the prisoners’ rights.
The mayor of the border town of Ipiales, Amilcar Pantoja, told the media on Friday that prisoners without pending legal cases in Colombia would be released.
Drug trafficking gangs operating in Ecuador – some involving Colombian criminals – have turned the country into one of the most violent in Latin America.
The homicide rate has jumped from six per 100,000 people in 2018 to 38 in 2024, among the highest in the region.
Taiwan votes to decide whether to oust lawmakers from China-friendly party in closely watched poll
- The independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party won last year’s presidential election
- But the China-friendly Nationalists and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party have enough seats to form a majority bloc
TAIPEI: Taiwanese were voting Saturday to determine whether to oust about one-fifth of their lawmakers, all from the opposition Nationalist Party, in elections that could potentially reshape the power balance in the self-ruled island’s legislature.
The independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party won last year’s presidential election, but the China-friendly Nationalists, also known as the KMT, and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party have enough seats to form a majority bloc.
Those who support removing the 24 lawmakers are angry that the KMT and its allies have blocked key legislation, especially the defense budget, and passed controversial changes that are seen as diminishing the power of the executive and favoring China, which considers the island its own territory.
The opposition parties’ actions sparked concerns among some Taiwanese about the island’s democratic integrity and its ability to deter Chinese military threats, leading to the recall campaigns. The scale of the recall elections is unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23.
But the KMT alleged the ruling party was resorting to political retaliation after it lost the legislative majority, saying the recalls were undermining and challenging Taiwan’s democratic system.
The KMT holds 52 seats, while the ruling DPP holds 51 seats. For the DPP to secure a legislative majority, at least six KMT lawmakers would need to be ousted, and the ruling party would need to win all by-elections, which would need to be held within three months following the announcement of results.
For the recall to pass, more than a quarter of eligible voters in the electoral district must vote in favor of the recall, and the total number of supporters must exceed those against.
If KMT loses its seats in the recall elections, the party can file new candidates for the by-elections and may be able to win back the seats.
Outside a Taipei polling station, voters old and young were waiting in line to cast their ballots. The poll will close at 4 p.m. local time, with results expected on Saturday night.
The elections have intensified tensions between those backing the status quo and those favoring improved ties with Beijing. Critics accuse China-friendly politicians of compromising Taiwan and take issue with their meetings with mainland Chinese politicians. But these Taiwanese politicians claim their connections are vital for dialogue given Beijing’s refusal to interact with the DPP.
When asked about the recall election, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson Zhu Fenglian said in June that since the administration of Taiwan President Lai Ching-te came into power, it has sought to achieve “one-party dominance” and practiced “dictatorship” under the guise of “democracy,” state broadcaster CCTV reported. She was quoted as saying that Lai’s government has spared no effort in suppressing opposition parties and those who supported the development of cross-strait relations.
Taiwan’s mainland affairs council said Wednesday that the Chinese authorities and state media had tried to blatantly interfere with the vote.
Two Southwest flight attendants hurt after jet dives to avoid mid-air collision
- Southwest Flight 1496 sharply descended nearly 500 feet, according to flight tracking websites
- The incident appeared to be the fourth involving military aircraft since March
WASHINGTON: Two flight attendants on a Southwest Airlines flight departing Burbank, California, were injured on Friday after pilots took evasive action to dodge another aircraft on takeoff, the airline said.
Southwest Flight 1496 sharply descended nearly 500 feet, according to flight tracking websites, marking the second time in a week that a US commercial jet was forced to make abrupt flight maneuvers to avoid a potential mid-air collision.
The incident also appeared to be the fourth involving military aircraft since March.
The airline and the Federal Aviation Administration said the Southwest pilots took action after receiving cockpit alerts of other aircraft traffic being dangerously close. The Southwest Boeing 737 continued on to Las Vegas, where it landed uneventfully.
Flight-tracking service Flightradar24 identified the other aircraft as a Hawker Hunter fighter jet – British-built aircraft – that crossed in front of the Southwest flight.
The planes came within 7.82km of each other laterally and 107m vertically. The US Air Force and Defense Department did not immediately respond to inquiries regarding the military jet’s presence near Burbank.
The FAA was investigating.
Two flight attendants were treated for injuries, the airline said, without providing detail.
No injuries were immediately reported by passengers, according to Southwest. But one passenger told Fox News Digital the sharp descent stirred panic onboard.
“It was terrifying. We really thought we were plummeting to a plane crash,” Caitlin Burdi said in an on-camera interview. After the incident, “the pilot came on (the intercom), and he told us we almost collided with another plane.”
According to a statement from Southwest, the incident began when its crew responded to “two onboard traffic alerts” while taking off from the Hollywood Burbank Airport north of Los Angeles, “requiring them to climb and descend to comply with the alerts.”
Three earlier close calls
In a separate incident one week ago, a SkyWest Airlines jet operating as a Delta Connection flight from Minneapolis reported taking evasive action to avoid a possible collision with a US Air Force bomber during a landing approach over North Dakota on July 18.
The FAA said on Monday it was investigating last Friday’s near-miss incident involving SkyWest Flight 3788, an Embraer ERJ-175 regional jet, which landed safely at Minot, North Dakota.
The Air Force confirmed a B-52 jet bomber assigned to Minot Air Force Base had conducted a ceremonial flyover of the North Dakota State Fair last Friday around the time of the SkyWest incident.
The Air Force said the bomber cockpit crew was in contact with local air traffic control before, during and after the flyover, and that the Minot International Airport control tower “did not advise of the inbound commercial aircraft” as the B-52 was departing the area.
The FAA has said that air traffic services were provided by the Minot air traffic control tower, which is run by a private company and not FAA employees.
The National Transportation Safety Board and FAA are investigating a March 28 close call involving a Delta Airbus A319 jet and a group of Air Force jets near Reagan Washington National Airport. The four Air Force T-38 Talons were heading to nearby Arlington National Cemetery for a flyover at the time.
There has been intense focus on military traffic near civilian airplanes since an Army helicopter collided with an American Airlines regional jet on January 29 near Reagan National, killing 67 people.
In early May, the FAA barred Army helicopter flights around the Pentagon after another near miss.
Democrats and advocates criticize Trump’s executive order on homelessness
- Many of the concepts in Trump's order have been tried in Democrat-led cities in California to get people off the streets and into treatment
- What's problematic in the new order is forcibly locking people up, which is not the right approach to dealing with homelessness, say advocates
SAN FRANCISCO, California: Leading Democrats and advocates for homeless people are criticizing an executive order President Donald Trump signed this week aimed at removing people from the streets, possibly by committing them for mental health or drug treatment without their consent.
Trump directed some of his Cabinet heads to prioritize funding to cities that crack down on open drug use and street camping, with the goal of making people feel safer. It’s not compassionate to do nothing, the order states.
“Shifting these individuals into long-term institutional settings for humane treatment is the most proven way to restore public order,” the order reads.
Homelessness has become a bigger problem in recent years as the cost of housing increased, especially in states such as California where there aren’t enough homes to meet demand. At the same time, drug addiction and overdoses have soared with the availability of cheap and potent fentanyl.
The president’s order might be aimed at liberal cities such as San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York, which Trump views as too lax about conditions on their streets. But many of the concepts have already been proposed or tested in California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democratic mayors have worked for years to get people off the streets and into treatment.
Last year, the US Supreme Court made it easier for cities to clear encampments even if the people living in them have nowhere else to go.
Still, advocates say Trump’s new order is vague, punitive and won’t effectively end homelessness.
Newsom has directed cities to clean up homeless encampments and he’s funneled more money into programs to treat addiction and mental health disorders.
His office said Friday that Trump’s order relies on harmful stereotypes and focuses more on “creating distracting headlines and settling old scores.”
“But, his imitation (even poorly executed) is the highest form of flattery,” spokesperson Tara Gallegos said in a statement, referring to the president calling for strategies already in use in California.
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie has also emphasized the importance of clean and orderly streets in banning homeless people from living in RVs and urging people to accept the city’s offers of shelter. In Silicon Valley, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan recently pushed a policy change that makes a person eligible for jail if they reject three offers of shelter.
Trump’s executive order tasks Attorney General Pam Bondi and the secretaries for health, housing and transportation to prioritize grants to states and local governments that enforce bans on open drug use and street camping.
Devon Kurtz, the public safety policy director at the Cicero Institute, a conservative policy group that has advocated for several of the provisions of the executive order, said the organization is “delighted” by the order.
He acknowledged that California has already been moving to ban encampments since the Supreme Court’s decision. But he said Trump’s order adds teeth to that shift, Kurtz said.
“It’s a clear message to these communities that were still sort of uncomfortable because it was such a big change in policy,” Kurtz said.
But Steve Berg, chief policy officer at the National Alliance to End Homelessness, called parts of the order vague. He said the US abandoned forced institutionalization decades ago because it was too expensive and raised moral and legal concerns.
“What is problematic about this executive order is not so much that law enforcement is involved — it’s what it calls on law enforcement to do, which is to forcibly lock people up,” Berg said. “That’s not the right approach to dealing with homelessness.”
The mayor of California’s most populous city, Los Angeles, is at odds with the Newsom and Trump administrations on homelessness. Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, opposes punishing sweeps and says the city has reduced street homelessness by working with homeless people to get them into shelter or housing.
“Moving people from one street to the next or from the street to jail and back again will not solve this problem,” she said in a statement.
Death toll rises in Thai-Cambodian clashes despite ceasefire call
- A long-running border dispute erupted into intense conflict involving jets, artillery, tanks and ground troops
- The fighting has forced more than 138,000 people to be evacuated from Thailand’s border regions
SAMRAONG, Cambodia: Thailand and Cambodia clashed for a third day on Saturday, as the death toll from their bloodiest fighting in years rose to 33 and Phnom Penh called for an “immediate ceasefire.”
A long-running border dispute erupted into intense conflict involving jets, artillery, tanks and ground troops on Thursday, prompting the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting on the crisis Friday.
Cambodia’s defense ministry said 13 people were now confirmed killed in the fighting, including eight civilians and five soldiers, with 71 people wounded.
In Thailand, the army said five soldiers were killed on Friday, taking the toll there to 20 – 14 civilians and six military.
The death toll across the two countries is now higher than the 28 killed in the last major round of fighting between 2008 and 2011.
Both sides reported a clash around 5:00 a.m. (2200 GMT Friday), with Cambodia accusing Thai forces of firing “five heavy artillery shells” into locations in Pursat province, which borders Thailand’s Trat province – on the coast some 250 kilometers (160 miles) southwest of the main frontlines.
AFP journalists in the Cambodian town of Samraong, near the ridge of forest-clad hills that marks the border and has seen the bulk of the fighting, heard the thump of artillery early Saturday afternoon.
A Thai villager reached by phone as he sheltered in a bunker in Sisaket province, just 10 kilometers from the frontier, also reported hearing artillery.
“I just want this to end as soon as possible,” Sutian Phiewchan said.
The fighting has forced more than 138,000 people to be evacuated from Thailand’s border regions, with more than 35,000 driven from their homes in Cambodia.
After the closed meeting of the Security Council in New York, Cambodia’s UN ambassador Chhea Keo said his country wanted a ceasefire.
“Cambodia asked for an immediate ceasefire – unconditionally – and we also call for the peaceful solution of the dispute,” he told reporters.
Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said Saturday that for any ceasefire or talks to proceed, Cambodia needed to show “genuine sincerity in ending the conflict.”
“I urge Cambodia to stop violating Thai sovereignty and to return to resolving the issue through bilateral dialogue,” Maris told reporters.
Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said Friday, before the UN meeting was held, that Bangkok was open to talks, possibly aided by Malaysia.
Malaysia currently holds the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regional bloc, of which Thailand and Cambodia are both members.
Both sides have blamed the other for firing first, while Thailand accused Cambodia of targeting civilian infrastructure, including a hospital hit by shells and a petrol station hit by at least one rocket.
Cambodia has accused Thai forces of using cluster munitions.
Former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra – still an influential figure in the kingdom – visited shelters on Saturday to meet evacuees.
“The military needs to complete its operations before any dialogue can take place,” Thaksin told reporters.
The 76-year-old said he had no plans to contact Hun Sen, Cambodia’s powerful ex-prime minister who was long a close ally.
“His actions reflect a disturbed mindset. He should reflect on his conduct,” Thaksin said of Hun Sen.
The fighting marks a dramatic escalation in a long-running dispute between the neighbors – both popular destinations for millions of foreign tourists – over their shared 800-kilometer border.
Dozens of kilometers in several areas are contested and fighting broke out between 2008 and 2011, leaving at least 28 people dead and tens of thousands displaced.
A UN court ruling in 2013 settled the matter for more than a decade, but the current crisis erupted in May when a Cambodian soldier was killed in a new clash.
Relations between the neighbors soured dramatically when Hun Sen last month released a recording of a call with Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra focused on the border row.
The leak triggered a political crisis in Thailand as Paetongtarn – Thaksin’s daughter – was accused of not standing up for Thailand enough, and of criticizing her own army.
She was suspended from office by a court order.
