US president signs annual defense bill worth of $770 billion
US President Joe Biden has signed the country’s annual defense bill after it was passed by the House and subsequently the Senate.
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year 2022 authorizes $770 billion in military spending, the White House announced.
The House of Representatives backed the bill in a bipartisan 363-70 vote earlier this month, which was followed by a bipartisan 88-11 vote in the Senate.
One of the interesting aspects of the bill was the $300 million for the so-called Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which comes amid tensions between Washington and Moscow over the country.
The NDAA also includes $4 billion for the European Defense Initiative and $150 million for Baltic security cooperation.
It is also designed to counter China on the issue of Chinese Taipei by introducing $7.1 billion for the the so-called Pacific Deterrence Initiative.
The Unites States’s global adventurism has raised tensions with China and Russia to a whole new level during the Biden administration.
The military bill also established a "multi-year independent Afghanistan War Commission" to examine the US defeat in Afghanistan after two decades of occupation in the war ravaged country.
The US president voiced concerns about certain provision in the NDAA that would oblige his administration to report to the Congress over military issues.
"It has been the common practice of the executive branch to comply with statutory reporting requirements in a way that satisfies congressional needs, pursuant to the traditional accommodation practice and consistent with due regard for the protection from unauthorized disclosure of classified information relating to sensitive intelligence sources and methods or other exceptionally sensitive matters," Biden wrote.
The annual defense bill has also introduced a 2.7 percent increase in basic pay for the military personnel.
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