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A highly anticipated vote in Congress on a broad aid plan for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan


 The U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote Saturday on a sweeping aid plan for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, in a much-anticipated move that has the support of both Republicans and Democrats.

The vote on the massive $95 billion aid package, which US President Joe Biden has been calling for for months, begins at 13:00 local time (17:00 GMT).

At the same time, representatives will vote on a proposal to ban the "Tik Tok" application, which is attached to this bill.

If approved, these measures will be sent to the Senate for consideration.

These projects, which were revealed on Wednesday, were the result of very arduous negotiations, multiple visits by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington, and pressure from allies around the world, which even led to the ouster of a Republican leader.

Funding for the war in Ukraine is at the heart of the tug-of-war between Democrats and Republicans.

The United States is Kiev's main military backer, but Congress has not approved a major aid package for Ukraine in a year and a half due to partisan differences.

Democratic President Joe Biden and his party in Congress support providing additional aid to Ukraine in its war against Russian aggression.

After months of wavering, Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson announced his support for a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine.

He said with some emotion during a press conference, "Frankly, I would rather send ammunition to Ukraine than send our young men into combat.

This plan, based primarily on military and economic aid, allows President Biden to confiscate Russian assets and sell them to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine, an idea that has resonated with other G7 countries.

Among the items included in this broad plan is $13 billion in military aid to Israel in its war against Hamas. In particular, the money would help strengthen Israel's air defense system, known as Iron Dome.

The package also includes more than $9 billion "to respond to urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza and other vulnerable people around the world," according to a summary of the text of the project.

As requested by President Joe Biden, this bill provides $8 billion to confront China militarily by investing in submarines and aiding Taiwan.

It also stipulates that TikTok will be banned in the United States unless the application cuts ties with its parent company, ByteDance, and China in general.

The video-recording application is accused of helping China spy on its 170 million users in the United States and manipulate their thoughts.

The Biden administration expressed "broad" support for all of these measures.

On Friday, Karen Jean-Pierre, spokeswoman for the Democratic president, announced that U.S. aid to Ukraine would resume "immediately" after the text is approved by both chambers of Congress.

The matter may only take a few days, as Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer promised that lawmakers would "move quickly" after the Senate vote.

Passage of the package would bring relief to U.S. allies.

But it could cost Republican leader Mike Johnson his job. A handful of staunchly oppositional conservative lawmakers have pledged to help Ukraine by doing what they can to oust the House speaker as punishment for his support.

His predecessor, Kevin McCarthy, lost his job last year after pro-Trump members of his party accused him of making a "secret deal" with Democrats on Ukraine.

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