By AAMER MADHANI and SEUNG MIN KIM (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden signed the law on Wednesday for $95 billion in war aid that includes support for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. It also includes a requirement for the social media app TikTok to be sold or banned in the U.S.
The announcement marks the end of a tough fight with Republicans in Congress over providing needed assistance for Ukraine.
Biden said at the White House that “We rose to the moment, we came together, and we got it done. Now we need to move fast, and we are.”
However, the delay in funding has caused significant harm to Biden's efforts to aid Ukraine against Russia's invasion since August.
Biden also approved sending $1 billion in military support to Ukraine and said it would start arriving in the “next few hours” — the first part of about $61 billion allocated for Ukraine. The package includes air defense capabilities, artillery rounds, armored vehicles, and other weapons to strengthen Ukrainian forces.
But it's uncertain if Ukraine can make enough progress to maintain U.S. political support after months of losses and damage to its infrastructure.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said, “It’s not going in the Ukrainians’ favor in the Donbas, certainly not elsewhere in the country. Mr. Putin thinks he can play for time. So we’ve got to try to make up some of that time.”
The bill also includes a provision requiring TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app within nine months or face a ban in the U.S. The president can allow a 90-day extension, making the timeline one year, if there's a clear plan and “significant progress” in selling the app.
Both the administration and lawmakers view TikTok as a growing national security concern.
TikTok plans to challenge the action by Congress, saying it's unconstitutional.
The company stated, “We believe the facts and the law are clearly on our side, and we will ultimately prevail.”
Biden emphasized that the bill provides about $1 billion in humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza, affected by the Israel-Hamas war continues.
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