Senators overwhelmingly passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on Thursday, sending the bill to US President Joe Biden to be signed into law. The final vote count was 83-11.
Lawmakers included the Taiwan Enhanced Resilience Act in the NDAA, which would authorize up to $10 billion in security assistance to modernize Taiwan’s security capabilities. The legislation also includes $800 million for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative - $500 million more than requested by Biden for Ukraine.
The NDAA also includes a number of other measures, including repealing the military’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, raising military pay and imposing restrictions on engagement with Russia.
This includes engagement with any individuals involved in significant transactions of gold with Russia.
The NDAA extends a ban on military-to-military cooperation with Russia for five years and prohibits funds from being used to recognize Russia’s sovereignty over Crimea and other territories separated from Ukraine.