Foreign Digest: Ukraine and Hungary, and Iran

Ukraine and Hungary: The European Union approved $50 billion military aid to Ukraine to defend it against Russian aggression, after Hungary dropped its objections regarding the budget. Decisions by the EU require unanimity among the 27 members. The move comes while American aid has been held up by populist Congressional Republicans who have been trying to use the aid to Ukraine and Israel, which is battling Iranian-backed terrorists, as leverage to force a deal to restrict refugees seeking asylum from persecution. Meanwhile, Hungary’s nationalist and illiberal Government is still blocking Sweden’s entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, for which unanimity is also required among its members. Sweden abandoned its longtime neutrality after Russia invaded Ukraine, as did neighboring Finland, which joined NATO last year. Iran: The United States has been striking Iranian proxies in Iraq and Syria after one of the militant groups struck an American outpost in Jordan that supports the U.S. mission against Islamist terrorists, particularly the Islamic State, the offshoot of al-Qaeda. The attack by the Iranian-backed militants killed three Americans and wounded over two score more. The Islamic Republic of Iran, the greatest state sponsor of terrorism in the world, foments Islamic revolution of Muslims around the world. It supports terrorists and militants not only in Iraq and Syria, but in Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and Yemen, among other places. The U.S. has been striking pro-Iranian proxies in Syria and Iraq over the last three years and especially the last few months, after the militants increased their attacks.