With an approving nod to a critical effort that helped the Allied powers beat Hitler in World War II, the Senate yesterday passed Lend-Lease legislation to provide expedited weapons deliveries to Ukraine as that country battles renewed Russian aggression in its southern and eastern regions. 

Reports of Russian atrocities committed in towns and villages near Kiev precipitated the approval of the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022, which was formally introduced to the Senate in January. According to the congressional website, “the bill temporarily waives certain requirements related to the President’s authority to lend or lease defense articles if the defense articles are intended for Ukraine’s government and necessary to protect civilians in Ukraine from Russian military invasion.” 

In World War II the Lend-Lease program let America resupply the Allies — including the Soviet Union — with materiel by skipping over procedural hurdles. The approval of analogous legislation now underscores that with Russian troops on the move, time is of the essence.

Following the Senate’s passage of the bipartisan legislation, Senator Shaheen, chairwoman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation and a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, issued a statement that read in part: “As the war in Ukraine unfolds, delivering military aid as quickly as possible is pivotal for Ukraine’s ability to defend itself against Putin’s unprovoked attacks. 

“The Kremlin is committing horrific assaults throughout the nation on civilian infrastructure and targeting innocent men, women and children. As the world bears witness to the most serious security threat to Europe and our global stability since World War II, this legislation to speed up the process of moving military equipment to the frontlines couldn’t be more urgent.”

Congress recently approved nearly $14 billion of military and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine and the State Department on Tuesday announced an additional $100 million in funding for Javelin missiles and other materiel, Politico reported.

Speaking on the Senate floor yesterday, Majority Leader Schumer called the massacres reported at the outskirts of the Ukrainian capital “pure evil” and said that Russian troops are carrying out a “genocide” in Ukraine.

The Kremlin, for its part, wasted no time in assailing the Senate’s approval of the Lend-Lease bill. A Russian foreign affairs ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said the West is only “tossing” weapons on Ukraine. Either for lack of mathematical prowess or other reasons, Ms. Zakharova did not mention the staggering number of Russian rockets “tossed” at Ukraine, nor the number of bombs dropped on its cities, since Russia invaded the country on February 24.