WASHINGTON, May 19 - The Senate whisked a $40 billion package of military, economic and food aid for Ukraine and U.S. allies to final congressional approval Thursday, putting a bipartisan stamp on America’s biggest commitment yet to turning Russia’s invasion into a painful quagmire for Moscow.

The legislation, approved 86-11, was backed by every voting Democrat and most Republicans, The Associated Press reported. The vote signaled that both parties were largely unified about sending Ukraine the materiel it needs to fend off Russian President Vladimir Putin’s more numerous forces.

I applaud the Congress for sending a clear bipartisan message to the world that the people of the United States stand together with the brave people of Ukraine as they defend their democracy and freedom,” President Joe Biden said in a written statement.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the United States. “This is a demonstration of strong leadership and a necessary contribution to our common defense of freedom,” he said in his nightly video address to the nation.

With control of Congress at stake in elections less than six months off, all “no” votes came from Republicans.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., a strong backer of the measure, warned his GOP colleagues that a Russian victory would move hostile forces ever closer to the borders of crucial European trading partners. That would prompt higher American defense spending and tempt China and other countries with territorial ambitions to test U.S. resolve, he said.

Passage came as Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. had drawn down another $100 million worth of Pentagon weapons and equipment to ship to Kyiv, bringing total U.S. materiel sent there since the invasion began to $3.9 billion. He and other administration officials had warned that authority would be depleted by Thursday, but the new legislation will replenish the amount available by more than $8 billion.

Overall, around $24 billion in the measure is for arming and equipping Ukrainian forces, helping them finance weapons purchases, replacing U.S. equipment dispatched to the theater and paying for American troops deployed in nearby countries.

There is also $9 billion to keep Ukraine’s government afloat and $5 billion to feed countries around the globe reliant on Ukraine’s now diminished crop yields. And there is money to help Ukrainian refugees in the U.S., seize Russian oligarchs’ assets, reopen the U.S. embassy in Kyiv and prosecute Russian war crimes.

The measure, which officials have said is designed to last through September, tripled the size of the initial $13.6 billion in Ukraine aid that lawmakers approved shortly after the February invasion.

The combined $54 billion price tag exceeds what the U.S. has spent annually on all its military and economic foreign assistance in recent years, and approaches Russia’s yearly military budget.

Help is on the way, really significant help. Help that could make sure that the Ukrainians are victorious,” said Schumer, voicing a goal that seemed nearly unthinkable when Russia first launched its brutal attack.

If the war drags on, as seems plausible, the U.S. may have to eventually decide whether to spend more even as inflation, huge federal deficits and a potential recession loom. Under those circumstances, winning bipartisan approval of any future aid bill could become tougher, especially as November draws near and cooperation between the parties frays. (ap/ez)