Biden's signature came after the US Senate approved the multibillion aid package a day earlier, following months of negotiations and debate.
The foreign aid package, worth USD 95 billion in total, includes nearly USD 61 billion in aid to Ukraine, USD 26 billion for Israel and USD 8 billion for the Indo-Pacific region, broadcaster CNN reported.
Speaking from the White House after signing the bill on Wednesday, Biden said it was a “good day for America, a good day for Ukraine and a good day for world peace."
The aid package, Biden said, is “going to make America safer. It’s going to make the world safer. And it continues America’s leadership in the world,” according to CNN.
He acknowledged the challenges in getting the package approved.
“It was a difficult path,” Biden said in his remarks. “It should have been easier. It should have gotten there sooner. But in the end, we did what America always does: We rose to the moment, came together. We got it done.”
He noted that Russia has “been responsible for a brutal campaign against Ukraine.”
“They’ve killed tens of thousands of Ukrainians,” Biden said, as cited by CNN, “bombed hospitals … kindergartens, grain silos, tried to plunge Ukraine into a cold dark winter.”
He added that the shipments of US military supplies to Ukraine would begin “in the next few hours” and include ammunition for air defense systems, HIMARS missiles, artillery shells, armored vehicles, and other armaments, Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform reported.
Moments after Biden signed the bill into law, the Pentagon announced USD 1 billion in new aid for Ukraine, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Zelensky thanks America, says new aid will help protect lives from Russian attacks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed gratitude for the hefty aid package, saying that his country was getting the support it needed "to continue protecting lives from Russian attacks."
"President Biden signed into law today the support package approved by Congress, which includes Ukraine aid," Zelensky wrote on the X social media platform. "We completed this half-year path. Regardless of what anyone says, we are gaining the support we need to continue protecting lives from Russian attacks."
Zelensky added: "Over the past few days, we have already been actively working with our American friends on all levels to include the exact types of weapons that our warriors require in this package. It totals $1 billion and includes exactly what we discussed with President Biden during our call. I am grateful to President Biden, Congress, and all Americans who recognize that we must cut the ground under Putin's feet rather than obeying him, as this is the only way to truly reduce threats to freedom. Together, we can ensure this."
In his daily video message to the nation, Zelensky vowed to "make every effort to compensate for the half-year spent in debates and doubts."
He said: "We must turn everything the occupier has accomplished during this time, as well as everything Putin intends to do, against him. All of his frontline actions, strikes on our energy system and infrastructure, and terror against our cities and villages must unite us all—everyone in the world who truly values life—around the need to increase pressure on Russia."
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, starting the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II.
Wednesday is day 791 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: IAR, PAP, Reuters, CNN