Donald Trump vetoes sweeping US defence bill

US President Donald Trump has vetoed a broad defence funding bill sent to him by Congress.

The outgoing president took the decision on Wednesday, complaining that it helps Russia and China and objecting to provisions to rename military bases.

The veto of the $740 billion measure to fund the military for fiscal 2021 came a day after the US leader, with less than one month left in office, threw a separate $900 billion Covid-19 relief bill and overall funding for the government into question.

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The bipartisan bill was passed by high enough margins in both chambers of Congress for lawmakers to -- in theory -- override the president’s rejection.

Trump criticised the annual National defence Authorisation Act for not responding to his demand to end liability protections for social media companies, known as Section 230 -- an issue with no relationship to the US defence Department. He also objected to a provision in the NDAA to rename military bases bearing the names of generals from the secessionist, slavery-supporting South in the 19th century US civil war.

Another point that led to his objection was a provision which could impede his decision to sharply cut US troop levels in Germany, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

The NDAA “fails to include critical national security measures, includes provisions that fail to respect our veterans and our military’s history, and contradicts efforts by my Administration to put America first in our national security and foreign policy actions,” Trump said in a statement.

Without the changes to Section 230, Trump said, the NDAA “is a ‘gift’ to China and Russia.”

Both the House and the Senate set aside time next week to vote to override the veto -- which would be the first such rebuff from Congress in his nearly four years in office.

Trump has repeatedly demanded that the NDAA include changes to Section 230, a part of US communications legislation that protects social media giants like Facebook and Twitter from responsibility for content posted by their users.

Since early this year Trump has become angered by social media for censoring or raising questions about the factuality of his own posts, especially about the coronavirus pandemic.

The veto does not immediately choke off funds to the Pentagon but if the NDAA isn’t passed soon, funding could be tightened.

(with inputs from agencies)