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See - Sada Elbalad
3 days ago
- Politics
- See - Sada Elbalad
US Approves Iron Dome Funding for Israel after Heated Congressional Debate
Taarek Refaat The U.S. House of Representatives has approved a new round of funding for Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system, ending weeks of heated political sparring on Capitol Hill. The measure, which allocates $1.3 billion in emergency defense assistance, passed late Friday with bipartisan support, though not without fierce opposition from progressive lawmakers. The funding comes at a time of renewed conflict in the region and amid mounting criticism from human rights groups over Israel's ongoing military operations in Gaza. Supporters of the bill argued that the Iron Dome, designed to intercept short-range rockets and missiles, is a purely defensive system vital to protecting civilian lives. 'This funding is about saving lives — full stop,' said Representative Michael McCaul (R-TX), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. 'Our ally Israel has the right to defend itself from indiscriminate rocket attacks.' Despite bipartisan backing, the vote exposed deep divisions within the Democratic Party. A bloc of progressive Democrats, including Representatives Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush, vocally opposed the measure, arguing that unconditional military support to Israel undermines the pursuit of peace and justice for Palestinians. 'We cannot continue to rubber-stamp billions in weapons for a government accused of committing war crimes,' said Rep. Tlaib on the House floor. 'This is not a neutral act — it is complicity.' While the measure ultimately passed with a vote of 317 to 108, nearly 70 Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the bill, a figure that underscores the enduring political strength of the U.S.-Israel alliance, even amid growing public debate. Critics, however, view the decision as part of a long-standing U.S. policy of military favoritism that exacerbates regional instability. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Israeli-Linked Hadassah Clinic in Moscow Treats Wounded Iranian IRGC Fighters News China Launches Largest Ever Aircraft Carrier Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Videos & Features Tragedy Overshadows MC Alger Championship Celebration: One Fan Dead, 11 Injured After Stadium Fall Arts & Culture "Jurassic World Rebirth" Gets Streaming Date Lifestyle Get to Know 2025 Eid Al Adha Prayer Times in Egypt Arts & Culture South Korean Actress Kang Seo-ha Dies at 31 after Cancer Battle News "Tensions Escalate: Iran Probes Allegations of Indian Tech Collaboration with Israeli Intelligence" Sports Get to Know 2025 WWE Evolution Results News Flights suspended at Port Sudan Airport after Drone Attacks
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Republicans tear into Pentagon's Ukraine weapons freeze
Republican lawmakers are slamming the Trump administration's decision to halt some U.S. missile and munitions shipments to Ukraine, warning it risks emboldening Russia at a pivotal point in the war. Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, co-chair of the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, said he would be 'aggressively looking into this matter' following the White House's acknowledgment that the Pentagon froze deliveries of critical air defense weapons due to concerns over shrinking U.S. stockpiles. 'We must build up our own defense industrial base here in the U.S. while simultaneously providing the needed assistance to our allies who are defending their freedom from a brutal invading dictator,' the Pennsylvania representative said in a post on X. 'To not do both is unacceptable.' Fitzpatrick later requested an emergency briefing from the White House and Pentagon. Lawmakers of varying political stripes called the holdup of weapons approved during the Biden administration a breach of Trump's renewed commitment to Kyiv at last week's NATO summit, where the president floated selling Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine. POLITICO first reported the news on Tuesday, and since then, Kyiv has summoned a U.S. diplomat to explain the hold. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said he is probing 'very intensely' whether the Pentagon's freeze is a breach of Ukraine aid legislation that Congress passed in 2024. He also argued the pause is coming 'at the wrong time,' weakening Trump's efforts to pressure Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate a peace deal with Ukraine. 'If you want to get him to the negotiating table in good faith, you have to put leverage and pressure on him, and that would be Lindsey Graham's economic sanctions and the flow of weapons,' McCaul said. 'If you take the flow of weapons out, yeah, then you're not, you don't have the leverage over Putin to negotiate.' Democrats — who during Trump's first term pressed for his impeachment over holding up money to arm Ukraine to secure information on the dealings of his main Democratic rival, Joe Biden, and his family — assailed the aid holdup. But some top lawmakers weren't ready to pin the blame on Trump himself. Rather, they singled out senior Pentagon officials who have been skeptics of further aid to Ukraine. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called out Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, a longtime proponent of shifting U.S. military resources away from Ukraine in order to beef up Taiwan's defenses. She argued the pause undermines Trump's commitments at NATO and urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is simultaneously serving as White House national security adviser, to enforce a strategy. "The Trump administration's mixed messaging is undermining its own agenda to bring Putin to the negotiating table, and this move under Secretary Hegesth's leadership will only make a just and lasting peace harder to obtain," Shaheen said in a statement. "Now is not the time for rogue actors undermining our national security interests.' Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), a senior Senate Armed Services Committee member, called the rationale behind the freeze 'fallacious and maybe even disingenuous.' He said he and colleagues in both parties were surprised by the news — and that Ukrainians will suffer. 'They're going to lose more lives, more people will be maimed and injured — more homes, hospitals, schools will be destroyed,' he said in an interview. 'The Russians … are not even making a pretense of going after military targets.' Other top Republicans were less troubled by reports of the stalled weapons shipments. Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.), who chairs the panel that controls much of the Pentagon budget, said he still needed to examine what munitions Ukraine has in its inventory, but suggested supply concerns might be warranted. 'I think part of it is the supply. So we've been running through a lot of Standard Missiles, the whole Patriot system,' Calvert said. 'The other part of it is that the Europeans are beginning to pick up the slack. 'I don't know what they have in inventory right now, the Ukrainians. I'll find that out,' he said. House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) said he hadn't been informed of a pause on munitions shipments, but he noted the Trump administration has 'done it several times.' 'I don't know that he paused it for any purpose other than something regular that they do,' Rogers said of Trump. 'I don't have any reason to be upset about it until I learn more.' Trump's allies on Capitol Hill defended the move. House Foreign Affairs Chair Brian Mast (R-Fla.) said he hadn't heard of a specific delay but said there's a 'constant check and balance' in terms of what gets sent to Ukraine. 'You always want to make sure that your supply line is smooth, but if you're constantly making the checks, then it keeps them constantly vigilant,' Mast said. 'If you weren't constantly doing this, then all of a sudden, they're going to get themselves wrapped around the axle when you really do check it. So I think in the end, it makes for a smoother system.'


Daily Mail
30-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Two US congressmen urge Albanese to visit White House
Two US congressmen have urged Anthony Albanese to visit the White House in order to meet Donald Trump and save the wavering AUKUS pact. Republican Michael McCaul and Democrat Joe Courtney are the co-chairs of the Friends of Australia Caucus, which is pushing for AUKUS to go ahead after Elbridge Colby, the US defense under-secretary for policy, announced a review of the nuclear submarine deal. 'That would be very sound advice for him to do that.' Meanwhile, Courtney said Albanese should highlight the significant investment Aussie companies were making in US shipyards, set to hit $4.6billion AUD. He also emphasized that Australia would pay a fair price for the several nuclear submarines set to be acquired from 2032. 'This really takes it out of the sort of America First criticism of security agreements... where President Trump felt that other countries weren't pulling their own weight,' Courtney said. 'It's a case that is very unique that the prime minister can articulate. '(Albanese) is a very personable and socially savvy person, kind of like (UK Prime Minister) Keir Starmer, who does seem to have succeeded with the personal interaction.' Albanese was stood up by the US President at the G7 Summit in Canada earlier this month , and instead met with members of Trump's senior economic team. Trump left the summit early due to the Israel-Iran conflict, scotching planned meeting with several world leaders including Albanese, who has only ever spoken to the US President on the phone. The prime minister also did not attend last week's NATO Summit, where political observers had hoped he would have a second chance to meet with Trump. In a win for the US President, members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization - which Australia is not a part of - agreed at the summit to lift their defense spending to 5 percent of GDP over 10 years. The White House later indicated it expects its allies in the Asia-Pacific - including Australia - to also increase their defense funding. This means that Albanese may be pressured to increase defense spending if he wants to shore up the AUKUS deal, and to secure a reprieve from punishing tariffs imposed by the US on imports, including a 50 percent levy on steel and aluminum.


Daily Mail
30-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
American politician issues a wake-up call for Anthony Albanese - and what he needs to do for Trump
Two US congressmen have urged Anthony Albanese to visit the White House in order to meet Donald Trump and save the wavering AUKUS pact. Republican Michael McCaul and Democrat Joe Courtney are the co-chairs of the Friends of Australia Caucus, which is pushing for AUKUS to go ahead after Elbridge Colby, the US defence under-secretary for policy, announced a review of the nuclear submarine deal. McCaul said on Monday it was crucial for Albanese to develop a personal rapport with Trump. 'For (Albanese) to come to the White House would be a great gesture on the prime minister's part, that I think would go over very well,' he told the Australian Financial Review. 'That would be very sound advice for him to do that.' Meanwhile, Courtney said Albanese should highlight the significant investment Aussie companies were making in US shipyards, set to hit $4.6billion AUD. He also emphasised that Australia would pay a fair price for the several nuclear submarines set to be acquired from 2032. 'This really takes it out of the sort of America First criticism of security agreements... where President Trump felt that other countries weren't pulling their own weight,' Courtney said. 'It's a case that is very unique that the prime minister can articulate. '(Albanese) is a very personable and socially savvy person, kind of like (UK Prime Minister) Keir Starmer, who does seem to have succeeded with the personal interaction.' Albanese was stood up by the US President at the G7 Summit in Canada earlier this month, and instead met with members of Trump's senior economic team. Trump left the summit early due to the Israel-Iran conflict, scotching planned meeting with several world leaders including Albanese, who has only ever spoken to the US President on the phone. The prime minister also did not attend last week's NATO Summit, where political observers had hoped he would have a second chance to meet with Trump. In a win for the US President, members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation - which Australia is not a part of - agreed at the summit to lift their defence spending to 5 per cent of GDP over 10 years. The White House later indicated it expects its allies in the Asia-Pacific - including Australia - to also increase their defence funding. This means that Albanese may be pressured to increase defence spending if he wants to shore up the AUKUS deal, and to secure a reprieve from punishing tariffs imposed by the US on imports, including a 50 per cent levy on steel and aluminium. In this year's Budget, the Albanese government raised defence spending to 2.2 per cent of GDP, aiming for 2.3 per cent by 2034 - well short of the 3 per cent of GDP that the Trump administration has previously demanded of Australia.

News.com.au
29-06-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Barnaby Joyce says ‘bipartisan concern' in US about PM meeting Trump
A Coalition heavyweight has called on Anthony Albanese to lock in a meeting with Donald Trump after two of the staunchest supporters of the US-Australia alliance urged the Prime Minister to visit Washington. Six months have passed since Mr Trump's inauguration and Mr Albanese is yet to secure an in-person meeting with the US President. Australian producers have been slugged with tariffs on most exports to the US, including duties of up to 50 per cent on steel and aluminium, and doubts loom large about the Trump administration's commitment to AUKUS. The Albanese government has also made Australia an outlier in the West on defence spending, refusing to budge after Washington's request to hike it to 3.5 per cent of GDP amid alarm bells over China's military build-up. Speaking to Australian media, Republican representative Michael McCaul and Democrat colleague Joe Courtney said Mr Albanese would benefit from a one-on-one with Mr Trump. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is facing fresh calls to lock in a meeting with US President Donald Trump. Picture: Martin Ollman / NewsWire / Nicolas Tucat / AFP 'For (Albanese) to come to the White House would be a great gesture on the Prime Minister's part, that I think would go over very well,' Mr McCaul told the Australian Financial Review. 'That would be very sound advice for him to do that.' Mr McCaul and Mr Courtney are co-chairs of a congressional working group on AUKUS, which the Trump administration is reviewing. Asked about the comments on Monday, Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek said she was 'sure the Prime Minister's very much looking forward to' meeting Mr Trump. 'We're awaiting confirmation of a suitable time, and I'm sure when that confirmation comes through, the Prime Minister will be very happy to visit Washington,' she told Seven's Sunrise. 'He's had a number of calls with President Trump.' Ms Plibersek noted there had been numerous meetings at the ministerial level, including Foreign Minister Penny Wong's upcoming Quad summit in Washington. Foreign Minister Penny Wong will meet her US counterpart in Washington this week. Picture: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP She also praised Australia's ambassador, Kevin Rudd. 'Ambassador Rudd … is the Energiser Bunny of diplomacy,' Ms Plibersek said. 'He will be meeting with all of the members of the congress and Senate and people close to Donald Trump. 'There's a lot of communication going on both ways, but it's not the sort of thing where you just pop in with a plate of scones, hoping someone's home.' But appearing opposite the senior minister, Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce took a different view. He said the approach was not good enough. 'Ambassador Rudd might be the Energiser Bunny, but he hasn't energised a meeting between President Trump and the Prime Minister of Australia,' Mr Joyce said. 'We've gotta do that. When two people either side of the political fence in the United States say 'you better get over here' – they've obviously got a genuine bipartisan concern.' He also blasted Mr Albanese for having 'four meetings with the leader of China but no meetings with the President of the United States'. Mr Albanese is finalising details for his state visit to China mid next month. It will be his fourth meeting with Xi Jinping since winning power in 2022. Asked at an early morning press conference if a meeting with Mr Trump was in the works, Mr Albanese replied: 'Yes.'