What the US Senate's $40 billion Ukraine vote signalled
A look back at the Senate's aid vote and a Russian warning over NATO expansion in the days around 20 May 2022.
What did Kyiv's partners put on the table in the days leading up to 20 May 2022? One answer came from Washington, where on 19 May the United States Senate voted 86–11 to pass a $40 billion package aimed at sending aid to Ukraine. The legislation was then to go to President Joe Biden for his signature.
The margin of the vote stood out: only 11 senators opposed the measure, and 86 backed it. The sum placed the package among the major foreign aid measures connected to the Russo-Ukrainian War, which was already in its fourth month.
A different strand of the same period came from Moscow. On 16 May, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that Russia would react to what he called the "expansion of military infrastructure" by NATO in Sweden and Finland. He said problems were being created for no reason at all, and added that Russia would react accordingly.
Taken together, the two reports show the international setting as of 20 May 2022: a large aid package moving through the US legislative process, and a public warning from the Russian president about NATO's enlargement in northern Europe.
