November 10,
2015 (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) US Congress
has passed a defense policy bill that authorizes up to $50 million in lethal
military aid for Ukraine and mandates a White House response if Russia is
deemed to be violating a key arms control treaty. The White House said hours
after the $607 billion bill was passed by the Senate on November 10 that
President Barack Obama was likely to sign the legislation. The House of
Representatives passed a similar version of the bill last week.
President
Obama vetoed the previous bill over provisions that forbade the White House
from moving the remaining prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay military base in Cuba
to U.S. prisons. But he appears to not be threatening a veto on this bill over
the Guantanamo prisoner issue this time.
Among
other things, the package appropriates $300 million to help Ukraine in its
fight against Russian-backed separatists. That includes $50 million for lethal
weaponry such as antiarmor weapon systems, mortars, grenade launchers, small
arms, and ammunition. The Obama administration has previously resisted calls to
provide Ukraine with lethal aid, fearing that could provoke Russia.
The legislation also sets a
deadline for the administration to tell Congress whether Russia continues to be
in violation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty, which eliminated
an entire class of nuclear-capable missiles from Europe in the late 1980s. The
State Department’s most recent arms control report released in June said Russia
was testing a missile system that violated the treaty. Moscow, for its part,
has denied the allegations and accused the United States of deploying banned
weapons systems. The legislation also includes $715 million for Iraqi forces
battling Islamic state militants.
