U.S. Senate approves massive bill on defense spending by majority Military news

The U.S. Senate has approved a $ 777 billion defense bill and sent the legislation to the table of President Joe Biden for final approval.

The peer-reviewed Senate passed legislation, formally known as the National Defense Permit Act (NDAA), in a 88-11 vote on Wednesday, garnering strong support from Democrats and Republicans. The House of Representatives approved it 363-70 last week.

Biden is expected to sign a bill that would allow $ 25 billion more than the U.S. president had requested, but the White House did not immediately respond to requests from Reuters for comment on Wednesday.

The NDAA is closely watched by a wide range of industry groups and other interests, as it is one of the only major pieces of legislation that becomes law every year and deals with a wide range of issues.

Most of the funds approved in this year’s bill – $ 740 billion – go to the Pentagon, and another $ 27 billion goes to the Department of Energy. The law allows $ 9.9 million for defense needs outside of traditional jurisdiction, bringing the total to $ 777 million.

Democrat and Republican chairmen of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senators Jack Reed and James Inhofe, made a joint statement praising the passage of the bill as a rare moment of friendship in a split congress.

“This bill sends a clear message to our allies – that the United States remains a reliable and credible partner – and to our opponents – that the U.S. military is ready and fully capable of defending our interests around the world,” Inhof said.

But it does have rights groups and progressive U.S. lawmakers ask The massive price of the NDAA, arguing that money can be better spent on social programs and other needs of Americans.

“We ended the longest war in U.S. history, but nonetheless, Congress has just approved a $ 768 billion defense budget, more than the combined military budget of the next 11 countries,” said Pramila Jayapal, president of the Progressive Congress Caucus. he wrote Twitter on Wednesday, referring to the 20th anniversary of the US The war in Afghanistan, which ended in August.

“Don’t tell me we can’t afford to pay for poverty, cancel student debt, get over paid leave and overcome the climate crisis.”

In China, conflicts over Russia

The annual bill, which has been passed by the House of Representatives and Senate for decades without fail every year, has been postponed in the Senate this year due to China and various conflicts. Russian politics.

Among many provisions, the legislation includes a 2.7 percent increase in troop salaries, and more purchases of aircraft and naval vessels, in addition to strategies to deal with geopolitical threats.

NDAA includes $ 300 million in aid to the Ukrainian Security Assistance Initiative Ukrainian Armed Forces, $ 4 billion for the European Defense Initiative and $ 150 million for Baltic security cooperation.

As for China, the bill includes $ 7.1 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative and a statement in support of Congress. Taiwan, A democratically governed island that Beijing claims to be its territory. In addition, the Department of Defense is banned from purchasing products produced with it forced labor In the Xinjiang region of western China.

We ended the longest war in U.S. history, but Congress has just approved a $ 768 billion defense budget, more than the combined military budget of the next 11 countries.

Don’t tell me we can’t fight poverty, cancel student debt, exceed paid permits, and overcome the climate crisis.

– Pramila Jayapal (@PramilaJayapal) December 15, 2021

US blames China “genocide“In the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, there is growing tension between the two nations.

China rejects international criticism and sanctions over the situation in Xinjiang, despite claims that at least one million Uyghurs and mostly members of Muslim minorities have been arrested by the United Nations and rights groups.

Internally, the NDAA also includes a reform of the U.S. military justice system to decide whether or not to prosecute cases. rape, sexual assault and some other major crimes outside the hands of military commanders.

The change was a partial victory for the activists, as it did not deprive the military commanders of the authority to try all crimes. Democrat-led senator Kirsten Gillibrand came after years of efforts to change the system in response to thousands of sexual assault cases between service members, many of whom are never on trial.

The law also sets up a commission for the U.S. to assess the aftermath of the 20-year war in Afghanistan after the Taliban took over the country in August. The last US troops he left the country at the end of that month.

The Afghan Commission will have 16 members nominated by the two main parties and given an initial report within a year of the first meeting, and a final report within three years.

“The Commission will conduct a comprehensive assessment of the war in Afghanistan and make recommendations to report on tactical and strategic lessons learned about future operations, including the impact of troop increases and reductions and deadlines,” the legislation said.