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The United States is stepping up efforts to help Ukraine defend itself against the Russian invasion, which has now lasted over 40 days and counting.

On April 8 (Singapore time), the U.S. Senate passed a bill that revived one of World War 2's most storied pieces of legislation.

Lend-Lease Act 2022

Introduced by Senator Jon Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 was unanimously supported by the Senate.

This would expedite the transfer of "critical military equipment", according to Politico, and other supplies to Ukraine by waiving certain requirements under the Arms Export Control Act, according to Defense News.

The bill will go to the U.S. House of Representatives for a vote.

The bill will also allow the U.S. Department of Defense to lend or lease "defence articles" to any other Eastern European country, like Poland, that may be impacted by the invasion.

Cornyn said in a statement following the passage of the bill by the Senate:

"How we address a threat against one democracy’s sovereignty sends a message about how we’ll act on others, and adversaries like China are watching.

If we believe America supports freedom and democracy, we must provide Ukraine with the weapons necessary to protect its citizens."

Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat from New Hampshire and the lead Democrat sponsor of the bill, said:

"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."

World War 2 legacy

The Lend-Lease Act was a programme in 1941 that helped the U.S. to re-arm and re-supply their European allies in their struggle against the armies of Adolf Hitler.

This came after the British informed the U.S. in 1940 that the war had nearly bankrupted the country, and they could not pay cash for weapons as U.S. law at the time mandated.

President Franklin Roosevelt asked Congress for the authority to supply allies with those arms, saying, "We cannot, and we will not, tell them that they must surrender, merely because of present inability to pay for the weapons which we know they must have."

The Act then allowed the weapons to be paid for "in kind", or "property", or any other kind of "direct or indirect" benefit, with most of the aid ultimately becoming outright gifts.

While over 30 countries would benefit from Lend-Lease, the Soviet Union received a hefty 22 per cent of the total US$50.1 billion in aid, equivalent to almost US$700 billion today.

Josef Stalin famously said, "The United States is a country of machines. Without the machines we received through Lend-Lease, we would have lost the war."

Civilian killings documented in Bucha, Kyiv

The passage of the bill came after Russian forces withdrew from areas around Kyiv and the Ukrainian military reclaimed suburbs like Bucha.

Journalists on the ground documented civilian killings, which some European leaders have called "genocide".

International outrage over the brutal scenes led to vows of further support for the Ukrainians from world leaders.

On April 7, the U.S. Defense Department released a statement detailing the military assistance that the U.S. has provided Ukraine so far, totalling US$1.7 billion (S$2.3 billion) since the start of the Russian invasion.

The materials provided to Ukraine include anti-air systems, anti-tank weapons, drones, ammunition and body armour.

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Top image from Facebook and Ukraine SES Telegram channel.

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