Senate approves aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan and ultimatum to TikTok | USA

The US Senate approved this Tuesday a legislative package that includes military aid packages for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, and an order to block the Chinese social network TikTok on suspicion of spreading propaganda.

The approval of these laws by the upper house of the US Congress was expected and reflects the agreement reached between the Democratic and Republican Parties last week to overcome a months-long impasse. The legislative packages were only combined into a single one that received the vote in favor of 79 senators against 18 who were opposed.

With regard to TikTok, the law that will now be sent to President Joe Biden for promulgation determines that if ByteDance – the Chinese company that owns the social network – does not sell 81% of its North American assets to a US buyer or an allied country within the next nine months, the network will be banned throughout the United States.

In the opinion of the majority of US congressmen and senators, TikTok’s approximately 170 million users are vulnerable to manipulation of the content presented on the social network. Several studies conclude that an important portion of TikTok users only consume information through this social network.

In turn, Washington believes that the Chinese Government has the capacity to influence ByteDance’s operations, namely through manipulation of the algorithm that manages publications on TikTok. In February, a ban on the use of this network by employees of US federal agencies was issued.

Even after its approval, an easy or quick process is not expected to lead to the platform being banned in the USA. The deadline provided for by the legislation now approved by the Senate could be extended to one year by Biden.

One of the main difficulties will be finding a buyer with the capacity to acquire TikTok’s assets in the USA. There is no concrete assessment yet, but, taking into account the value attributed to ByteDance of 225 billion dollars (210 billion euros), it is expected to be quite large.

Large companies with this capacity, such as Meta or Google, would see an acquisition blocked by competition authorities and, so far, none have shown interest in moving forward with a deal under these terms, according to the New York Times.

The possible blocking of TikTok would also face opposition from the courts, mainly based on the thesis that this measure violates citizens’ right to freedom of expression. Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have already spoken out against the legislative proposal and have promised to challenge any future blocking of the platform in court.

Previous attempts to block TikTok were overturned by court decisions, as happened in Montana last year or when, in 2020, Donald Trump tried to force a measure identical to the one now approved by Congress.

Support for allies

In the same Senate session, assistance packages for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan were approved, worth 95 billion dollars (89 billion euros), which had been stuck in Congress for months.

“Make no mistake, America will fulfill its promise to act as a leader on the world stage and to close ranks against autocratic thugs like Vladimir Putin,” said Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The approval of these aid packages comes at a critical time, especially for Ukraine, which has long warned of the depletion of its ammunition reserves and warns that a failure in Western support could allow new territorial advances to Russia.

Washington wants to move quickly and Biden is expected to sign the decrees in the coming days so that assistance to Kiev can be implemented in the short term.

The approval by the Senate of these military aid packages for Washington’s allies marks the end of a long struggle in Congress that lasted half a year. The most radical faction of the Republican Party, made up of congressmen most loyal to Trump, blocked assistance for months, showing skepticism about the growing US involvement in the war in Ukraine and demanding tougher measures to stop the entry of migrants through the southern border with Mexico.