Briefly

UNITED STATES

Congress passes $61b package for Ukraine

The US Senate passed a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine late on Tuesday, with President Joe Biden vowing new arms supplies will be delivered swiftly to the conflict zone. Days after the House of Representatives cleared the measure, part of a massive $95 billion in assistance to allies, the Senate followed suit, passing the package with broad bipartisan support. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that "the money allocated and the weapons that will be supplied will not change this dynamic" and "they will lead to new victims on the Ukrainian side". He said the US defense industry will be the real beneficiary of the package.

INDONESIA

Election body declares Prabowo as president

Indonesia's General Election Commission, or KPU, on Wednesday declared Prabowo Subianto as the country's eighth president after appeals of two defeated presidential candidates concerning a dispute over presidential polls in February were rejected by the constitutional court. KPU Chairman Hasyim Asy'ari announced that Prabowo and his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka have been selected to be the president and vice president for the period of 2024 until 2029 with around 96 million or nearly 59 percent of the total votes.

Agencies - Xinhua