House passes bill to provide more Ukraine aid and impose new sanctions on Russia

By — Kevin Freking, Associated Press Kevin Freking, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/house-passes-bill-to-provide-more-ukraine-aid-and-impose-new-sanctions-on-russia Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter House passes bill to provide more Ukraine aid and impose new sanctions on Russia Politics Jun 4, 2026 8:36 PM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — The House passed legislation Thursday that would aid Ukraine and sanction key segments of the Russian economy, overriding objections from Republican leaders who warned the bill would undermine negotiations designed to achieve a comparable but stronger result. WATCH: As Russia pounds Ukrainian cities, Kyiv tries to turn the tide with battlefront innovation The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., seeks to cement U.S. assistance for Ukraine by providing more than $1 billion in security and reconstruction aid. It would make another $8 billion available for Ukraine's defense through loans. The 226-195 vote is a sign of impatience with President Donald Trump's approach to the war and represents the House's second major foreign policy break with Trump this week. The day before, the House, for the first time, approved a war powers resolution aimed at halting U.S. military action against Iran. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. Supporters were able to force action on the Ukraine bill by gathering 218 signatures on a discharge petition, a legislative tool that allows a majority of the House to effectively bypass leadership. Once rarely successful, House members have used the petition tool this Congress to pass bills on releasing the government's files on Jeffrey Epstein and to extend health care subsidies to many of those who get health coverage through the Affordable Care Act, though the latter measure faltered in the Senate. Meeks said the question before the House was simple. Would it help Ukraine negotiate from a position of strength or help Russia outlast American resolve? "We all want this war to end," Meeks said. "The question is how. Will we abandon Ukraine and force it into a terrible deal? That is what Vladimir Putin is counting on. Or will this body live up to the commitments we've made since the start of this war?" The vast majority of Republicans opposed the measure. Rep. French Hill, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, said he is a steadfast supporter of Ukraine. However, the Arkansas Republican said the House was confronted with a flawed, outdated measure that actually cuts funding for the Ukraine security assistance initiative compared to what Congress had agreed to as part of this year's defense policy. Another section could lead to a decrease in NATO spending, he warned. Rep. Brian Mast, the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, said he believed the bill was "a cudgel to fight