U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it's official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

  • Publications
  • Account settings
  • Browse Titles

NCBI Bookshelf. A service of the National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.

National Research Council (US) Working Group on Mobility Aids for the Visually Impaired and Blind. Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 1986.

Cover of Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research

Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research.

  • Hardcopy Version at National Academies Press

The ability to understand the layout of the larger spatial environment in which purposeful activity is undertaken.

Limitations in carrying out tasks, involving such factors as motivation, training, and resources needed to accomplish tasks.

Also electronic mobility aid. Any one of several electronic devices on the market designed to detect obstacles or to orient the blind or visually-impaired traveler. Examples include the Russell Pathsounder, the Laser Cane, the SONA aid system. A type of sensory aid.

Limitations in performing social roles or socially structured sets of tasks.

The lasting consequences of pathology, affecting parts of the organism. Loss of vision or low vision arising from retinal destruction or deformities of the eye or through neurological damage.

An administrative definition used by some federal, state and private programs. Defined as 20/200 acuity or worse in the better eye with correction or a visual field of 20 degrees diameter or less.

Impaired vision which even after optical correction is severe enough to affect one's functioning visually. Visual acuity of 20/70 or less in the better eye is one commonly used objective measure. (Excludes people who are totally blind.)

Generally, movement from place to place. Used here to mean movement undertaken to reach a destination, implicitly involving elements of orientation and obstacle avoidance.

An individual with training in the mobility problems of blind and visually-impaired persons, usually holding a B.A. or M.A. degree, whose primary job it is to assist the visually-impaired person in learning how to travel efficiently, effectively, and safely, including training in the use of mobility aids. Referred to elsewhere as orientators, orientation and mobility instructors, and peripatologists.

Collection and organization of information concerning the environment and one's relationship to it. For the visually-impaired person this involves the process of utilizing the remaining senses in establishing one's position and relationship to all other significant objects in one's environment.

A medically determined disease or disorder (including trauma, structural abnormality, etc.).

The processing of data by a machine prior to its presentation to the user in a coded form.

Electronic component that translates physical energy of one type into energy of another type. Usually used in conjunction with a sensor.

  • Cite this Page National Research Council (US) Working Group on Mobility Aids for the Visually Impaired and Blind. Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 1986. GLOSSARY.

Recent Activity

  • GLOSSARY - Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research GLOSSARY - Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research

Your browsing activity is empty.

Activity recording is turned off.

Turn recording back on

Connect with NLM

National Library of Medicine 8600 Rockville Pike Bethesda, MD 20894

Web Policies FOIA HHS Vulnerability Disclosure

Help Accessibility Careers

statistics

  • Search Search Please fill out this field.
  • Government & Policy

What Is Foreign Aid? Forms of Aid, Statistics, and Examples

travel aid define

What Is Foreign Aid?

The term foreign aid refers to any type of assistance that one country voluntarily transfers to another, which can take the form of a gift, grant , or loan. Most people tend to think of foreign aid as capital , but it can also be food, supplies, and services such as humanitarian aid and military assistance.

Broader definitions of aid include any assistance transferred across borders by religious organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and foundations. U.S. foreign aid usually refers to military and economic assistance provided by the federal government provides to other countries.

Key Takeaways

  • Foreign aid is any type of assistance that one country voluntarily transfers to another, which can take the form of a gift, grant, or loan.
  • Countries may provide aid through capital, food, supplies, and services such as humanitarian aid and military assistance.
  • Developed nations may provide developing nations with foreign aid after a natural disaster, times of conflict, or during an economic crisis.
  • The United Nations requires advanced countries to spend at least 0.7% of their gross national income on international aid.
  • The United States is the most generous, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Understanding Foreign Aid

As noted above, foreign aid is any type of assistance that one country's government provides to another nation, usually from developed to developing nations. Governments may issue aid in the form of:

  • Food and supplies
  • Medical assistance including doctors and supplies
  • Humanitarian aid such as relief workers
  • Training services including agricultural training
  • Health care
  • Assistance with infrastructure building
  • Activities related to peacebuilding

Governments may make agreements with the countries to which they provide assistance. For instance, a developed nation may agree to provide grants to those in need after a natural disaster or during times of conflict, whether they provide any type of capital or humanitarian aid. Or a government may agree to issue loans to an allied nation that experiences economic uncertainty with special repayment provisions.

Concerned about where foreign aid goes? Only a small portion of American assistance goes to federal governments, while the rest is assigned to non-profits, NGOs, and other organizations.

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), member countries contributed a record $161.2 billion in international aid in 2020. This was divided into:

  • $158 billion in capital grants and loans (including $12 billion directed toward COVID-19 relief)
  • $1.3 billion to develop private sector vehicles for growth
  • $1.9 billion worth of loans and equity to private companies

The United States is the most generous, according to the OECD, providing $35.5 billion in foreign aid in 2020. The remaining countries that were among the top five donors included:

  • Germany: $28.4 billion 
  • The United Kingdom: $18.6 billion 
  • Japan: $16.3 billion 
  • France: $14.1 billion

The United Nations (UN) calls for economically advanced countries to spend at least 0.7% of their gross national income (GNI) on international aid. Turkey, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom are the only countries that met or exceeded this level. The total contribution of member countries, though, averaged 0.3%—much lower than the UN target.

According to Security Assistance Monitor, the Middle East and North African region received the most assistance, followed by the Sub-Saharan Africa region. The countries that received the most foreign aid from the U.S. for 2020 include Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Tanzania, and Uganda.

Special Considerations

Foreign aid estimates tend to vary, given the different agencies, funding methods, and aid categories associated with U.S. foreign assistance efforts. For instance, the Congressional Research Service (CRS)—a nonpartisan organization—the country spent $44.12 billion in foreign assistance during the 2020 fiscal year. That figure amounted to 1% of the total federal budget authority.

Aid can be provided by governments directly or through special federal agencies. For instance, the  United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was created in 1961 to provide civilian aid. It provides assistance with education, environment, climate change, global health, crises and conflicts, food and agriculture, water, and human rights.

History of Foreign Aid

Foreign aid—also commonly referred to as international aid and economic aid—isn't a new concept. The colonies were recipients of foreign military aid, particularly from France, during the American Revolution . During World War I, the U.S. government loaned the Committee for Relief in Belgium $387 million—much of which it later forgave.

U.S. foreign aid began in earnest during World War II. Before entering the war, the government began funneling funds and materials to the allied nations under the Lend-Lease program, which totaled $50.1 billion by August 1945. The United States also contributed $2.7 billion through the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA), beginning in late 1943.

For the four years following 1948, the U.S. gave $13 billion in aid to countries affected by the war such as the United Kingdom, France, and West Germany through the Marshall Plan . The Mutual Security Act of 1951 authorized around $7.5 billion in foreign aid per year until 1961. The amount of aid authorized by the Mutual Security Act in 1951 was approximately 2.2% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP).

OECD. " COVID-19 spending helped to lift foreign aid to an all-time high in 2020 Detailed Note ." Accessed Oct. 6, 2021.

Inter-Agency Task Force on Financing for Development. " Official Development Assistance ." Accessed Nov. 2, 2020.

OECD. " Aid by DAC members increases in 2019 with more aid to the poorest countries ." Accessed Nov. 2, 2020.

Concern Worldwide U.S. " Foreign Aid by Country ." Accessed Oct. 6, 2021.

Congressional Research Service. " Foreign Assistance: An Introduction to U.S. Programs and Policy ." Accessed Oct. 6, 2021.

USAID. " What We Do ." Accessed Nov. 2, 2020.

travel aid define

  • Terms of Service
  • Editorial Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Privacy Choices
  • Dictionaries home
  • American English
  • Collocations
  • German-English
  • Grammar home
  • Practical English Usage
  • Learn & Practise Grammar (Beta)
  • Word Lists home
  • My Word Lists
  • Recent additions
  • Resources home
  • Text Checker

Definition of aid noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

  • humanitarian/food/medical aid
  • An extra £10 million in foreign aid has been provided for victims of the earthquake.
  • international aid workers
  • facilitate/​regulate trade (with other countries)
  • form/​join a trading bloc
  • live in/​compete in a global/​the world economy
  • support/​promote free trade
  • adopt/​call for/​oppose protectionist measures
  • erect/​impose/​reduce/​remove trade barriers
  • impose/​lift/​raise/​eliminate import tariffs (on something)
  • have/​run a huge/​large/​growing trade surplus/​deficit
  • embrace/​resist/​drive globalization
  • conduct/​handle/​talk about/​discuss foreign policy
  • pursue an aggressive/​a hawkish foreign policy
  • require/​use/​conduct diplomacy
  • establish/​break off/​sever/​restore diplomatic relations
  • foster/​promote/​strengthen regional cooperation
  • facilitate/​achieve economic/​political integration
  • exercise/​defend/​protect/​transfer/​restore/​regain national/​state/​full/​limited sovereignty
  • consolidate/​extend/​lose/​retain your power (in the region)
  • hold/​maintain/​change/​alter/​shift/​be a shift in the balance of power (in the region)
  • cause/​create/​open/​expose/​heal/​repair a deep/​growing/​major/​serious rift between X and Y
  • have/​hold/​host/​attend an international conference/​an economic forum/​a summit meeting
  • launch a new round of global/​multilateral/​world trade negotiations
  • send/​head/​lead/​meet a high-level/​an official/​a trade delegation
  • begin/​start/​continue/​resume peace talks
  • be committed to/​be opposed to/​disrupt/​undermine/​derail/​sabotage the peace process
  • negotiate/​achieve a lasting political settlement
  • broker/​sign a peace deal/​agreement/​treaty
  • be/​constitute/​pose a threat to global security
  • compromise/​endanger/​protect national security
  • justify/​be in favour of/ (US English) be in favor of/​be against military intervention
  • threaten/​authorize/​launch/​take/​support/​oppose unilateral/​pre-emptive military action
  • impose/​enforce/​lift/​end economic sanctions/​an arms embargo/​a naval blockade
  • close/​protect/​secure/​patrol the border
  • lead/​be involved in a peacekeeping operation
  • negotiate/​announce a $15 billion aid package/​an economic stimulus package
  • send/​provide/​request/​cut off military aid
  • bring/​provide emergency/​humanitarian relief
  • deliver/​distribute medical supplies/ (British English) food parcels/ (North American English) food packages
  • fund/​run a foreign/​a local/​an international NGO
  • reduce/​eradicate child/​global/​world poverty
  • The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.
  • The country's president has appealed for international aid in the wake of the disaster.
  • Emergency aid arrived too late for many.
  • a $14 million aid package
  • humanitarian

Want to learn more?

Find out which words work together and produce more natural-sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app. Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.

travel aid define

Definition of 'aid'

IPA Pronunciation Guide

Video: pronunciation of aid

Youtube video

AID in American English

Aid in american english, aid in british english, aid in british english, aid in british english, examples of 'aid' in a sentence aid, related word partners aid, trends of aid.

View usage over: Since Exist Last 10 years Last 50 years Last 100 years Last 300 years

Browse alphabetically aid

  • aichmophobia
  • aid a cause
  • aid a transition
  • All ENGLISH words that begin with 'A'

Related terms of aid

  • View more related words

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

Score: 0 / 5

Image

Wordle Helper

Tile

Scrabble Tools

Image

Vital US arms and ammo could reach Ukraine in days once Senate passes military aid bill as expected, Pentagon says

  • The Pentagon is expediting preparation for a military aid package, awaiting Senate approval.
  • The $95 billion aid bill, expected to pass next week, designates $60 billion for Ukraine.
  • The Pentagon said it can transport material very quicky: "We can move within days."

Insider Today

The Pentagon could rush vital air defense weapons and artillery shells to Ukraine within days if the military aid bill clears the Senate as expected and receives President Joe Biden's signature, said the Department of Defense.

The House of Representatives voted in favor of the bill on Saturday. The bill is widely expected to pass the Senate in the coming days. It generally mirrors a $95.3 billion national security bill passed by the upper chamber in February. President Biden has pledged to sign it into law.

With the Senate approval, officials told The Washington Post that preparations for the assistance package were well underway ahead of the anticipated legislative approvals.

Divisions within the Republican Party, exacerbated by opposition from far-right factions, have led to delays in advancing the funding bill. Indeed, a majority of Republicans voted against the bill, which passed by a 311-112 margin.

The aid allocation earmarks about $60 billion for Ukraine, with additional funds designated for allies, including Israel and key partners in Asia.

According to the Post's insider sources, The Department of Defense has expedited the assembly of this aid package in response to mounting concerns over Ukraine's ability to resist Russian advances.

Related stories

Top US military officials have warned that any delay in providing support could result in significant territorial losses and devastating casualties for Ukrainian forces.

Russia has been outgunning Ukraine 10 to 1 on artillery

The new aid package addresses critical shortages of Ukrainian units, including 155 mm ammunition for NATO-standard artillery systems and medium-range rocket artillery.

The US could send certain munitions "almost immediately" to Ukraine, according to a US military official, per The Guardian.

Officials in Ukraine have voiced growing frustration over perceived inaction from Washington as the conflict escalates.

Recent setbacks, such as the retreat from Avdiivka and subsequent Russian advances, have left Ukraine needing bolstered support from its allies.

As Ukraine grapples with ammunition shortages , its forces have been rationing existing armaments, with reports indicating that the Russian troops possess a significant advantage in artillery firepower.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week that his army was facing a profound shell shortage, and Russia was firing 10 times more artillery than Ukraine.

Ukraine's president thanked the House for its decisive bipartisan action on Saturday in a statement on X.

Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said on Thursday that the Pentagon stands ready to rush crucial supplies to Ukraine after clearance from Congress.

"We have a very robust logistics network that enables us to move material very quickly; as we've done in the past, we can move within days," he said.

Earlier this week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on allies to "speed up the delivery of missiles, artillery, and ammunition."

Ukraine is using the weapons we provided to destroy Russian combat capabilities. This makes us all safer."

Watch: Russian strike leaves 17 dead during Blinken's visit to Ukraine

travel aid define

  • Main content
  • Share full article

A photo of a man waving to a woman amid destroyed buildings.

Opinion Nicholas Kristof

What Happened to the Joe Biden I Knew?

Credit... Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Supported by

Nicholas Kristof

By Nicholas Kristof

Opinion Columnist

  • April 19, 2024

During the Darfur genocide and humanitarian crisis two decades ago, then-Senator Joe Biden passionately denounced then-President George W. Bush for failing to act decisively to ease suffering. Biden expressed outrage at China for selling weapons used to kill and maim civilians, and he urged me to write columns demanding the White House end needless wretchedness.

Darfur and Gaza are very different, of course, but I recall the senator’s compassion and urgency — and I wonder, where has that Joe Biden gone?

Gaza has become the albatross around Biden’s neck. It is his war, not just Benjamin Netanyahu’s. It will be part of his legacy, an element of his obituary, a blot on his campaign — and it could get worse if Gaza cascades into a full-blown famine or violent anarchy, or if a wider war breaks out involving Iran or Lebanon. An Israeli strike on a military base in central Iran early Friday underscored the danger of a bigger and more damaging conflict that could draw in the United States.

Consider just one example of America’s fingerprints on this war under Biden’s leadership. In January, the Israeli military dropped a bomb on a compound in Gaza used by the International Rescue Committee, a much-respected American aid organization that is supported in part by American tax dollars. The International Rescue Committee says that the near-fatal strike was caused by a 1,000-pound American-made bomb, dropped from an American-made F-16 fighter jet. And when an American-made aircraft drops an American-made bomb on an American aid group in an American-supported war, how can that not come back to Biden?

“Biden owns that,” said Jeremy Konyndyk , a former Biden and Obama administration official who now runs Refugees International, another aid group. “They’ve provided the matériel that sustains the war. They provided political support that sustains the war. They provided the diplomatic cover at the U.N. that sustains the war.”

This is not Biden’s war in the way that Vietnam was Lyndon Johnson’s war or that Iraq was Bush’s war. Biden has not sent American troops, and he has not directed this war. He is clearly uncomfortable with the civilian toll of this war and wishes Israel was conducting it with more restraint — yet he continues to underwrite it. His rhetoric has become more critical, but his actions so far have not changed significantly.

“Is this the war Biden would want?” Konyndyk asked. “No. But is this the war Biden is materially supporting? Yes. And so in that sense, it’s his war.”

A cloud of dirt flies into the air high above a city of tan buildings.

It was Ukraine that Biden wanted as his war. Not that he wanted any war at all, but Ukraine was his opportunity to stand up and uphold the “rules-based international order” against an enemy that violated international law, bombed infrastructure and sought to make all Ukrainians pay. But it is the war in Gaza that Biden has saddled himself with, with its “indiscriminate” bombing — as he himself described it in December — leaving him and America looking to much of the world like hypocrites.

Yet Biden will not easily extricate himself from this mess.

“Six months in, the Biden administration is in a strategic cul-de-sac with no easy way out — weakened both morally and politically, dependent on two combatants who see no urgency in ending the war and facing the real possibility of a serious escalation between Israel and Iran,” Aaron David Miller, a veteran American diplomat and Middle East peace negotiator, told me.

One of Biden’s reasons for standing close by the Israeli prime minister and keeping up the flow of weapons has been to ensure that Israel is prepared, should war break out with Iran or with Hezbollah in Lebanon. That’s a legitimate concern. But unconditionally arming Israel also enables Netanyahu to take provocative steps that increase the risk of expanded war — and everyone knows that peace may not be in Netanyahu’s personal interest, for it would bring new elections that he is expected to lose. That’s worth remembering as one considers Israel’s deadly bombing of an Iranian consulate in Syria early this month, the move that prompted Iran’s retaliatory strike on Israel.

“It was clearly an escalatory move,” Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat and foreign policy expert, said of the Israeli strike. He noted of Netanyahu: “Widening the war is something that could keep him in office longer.”

For decades I’ve known and admired Biden. He’s wise and decent, a committed public servant who tries to do the right thing. He’s the most experienced foreign policy hand in the Oval Office in decades, surrounded by excellent advisers and known for his warmth and empathy. He would be a hard man to dislike.

Yet I believe Biden’s ongoing support for the Israeli military campaign reflects miscalculations that grew out of his outrage at the savagery of the Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7, coupled with his conviction — quite right — that Israel not only had a right to strike back at Hamas but also had a duty to do so, to re-establish deterrence. Biden’s initial unwavering support for the military campaign also reflects his generation, growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust, and his deeply felt admiration for Israel. He has regularly said that “if Israel didn’t exist, we would have to invent it.”

Daniel Kurtzer, a former American ambassador to Israel, put it this way: “President Biden is preternaturally supportive of Israel. It’s in his DNA.”

Martin Indyk, who was twice ambassador to Israel, agrees. “You know the line about him being an old-style Zionist?” Indyk asked. “That’s the heart of it.”

Biden had many crucial decisions to make in the weeks after the Oct. 7 attack, but perhaps none were more consequential than this: how to manage his relationship with Netanyahu as the war in Gaza got underway. How much should he defer to Netanyahu, how much should he embrace him, how much should he impose consequences when Netanyahu ignored his suggestions of restraint? Biden had choices, and as Indyk correctly observed, Biden thought that the best way to move Netanyahu was with an arm on his shoulder.

That was, I believe, the first of Biden’s miscalculations. Netanyahu has always been a renegade out only for himself. After Netanyahu lectured President Bill Clinton in 1996, Clinton reportedly said , adding a couple of expletives: Who does he think he is? Who’s the superpower here?

Perhaps Biden overestimates his ability to win over Netanyahu, as he sometimes seems to put too much faith in his ability to charm Republican members of Congress. Biden deeply believes in the power of personal relationships, and this faith is both endearing and partly justified. But I’ve also seen his overconfidence in these relationships run aground on the hard reality that foreign leaders have different worldviews and inhabit different political worlds. Netanyahu reportedly keeps on his desk a photo of Biden on which Biden long ago scrawled : “Bibi, I love you, but I don’t agree with a damn thing you have to say.”

Diplomacy is a mix of carrots and sticks, but until recently Biden seemed to offer Netanyahu nothing but armloads of carrots. And Netanyahu kept on taking the gifts while ignoring Biden’s warnings. “Netanyahu seemed to take enormous pleasure in sticking his finger in Biden’s eye at every opportunity,” noted Menachem Rosensaft, a Cornell law professor and general counsel emeritus of the World Jewish Congress.

Biden’s efforts to persuade Netanyahu to allow more aid trucks into Gaza were, at least until recently, so ineffectual that the White House had to drop food from planes. In 1948, the United States organized the Berlin Airlift to overcome Soviet obstructionism; that meant confronting our adversary and constituted a show of strength. In 2024, the United States was reduced to organizing the Gaza airlift to get around the intransigence of our longtime aid recipient; that reflected Biden’s failure to confront our ally and amounted to a show of weakness.

Instead of organizing an airdrop (which has killed some people when aid fell on them), Biden had an opportunity to do something much more substantial to avert starvation. In December the United Nations Security Council tried to set up a U.N. system to inspect trucks entering Gaza rather than letting them get stuck in the Israeli inspection bottleneck. Reports were already coming in of catastrophic starvation in Gaza, yet the Biden administration effectively blocked this alternative by watering it down to nothing, according to people close to the negotiations. The upshot: Children starved to death.

The administration also tolerated a ferocious crackdown and land grab by Israeli West Bank settlers who operate with the backing of Netanyahu’s extremist cabinet. The United Nations reports that almost 5,000 Palestinians in the West Bank have been injured since Oct. 7 in confrontations with Israeli troops and settlers, who periodically steal Palestinians’ sheep or drive them from their homes. By the U.N.’s count, 451 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank in this period, including 112 children (nine Israelis were killed in the West Bank during this time). Then last month, Israel announced the largest seizure of West Bank land since the Oslo peace accords in 1993. It was a slap in the face of Biden, who has mostly turned the other cheek.

Biden also didn’t seem to anticipate how brutal the bombing of Gaza would be, how Israel would throttle aid flows and in effect starve Gazans, and how long the war would last. The administration signaled that it expected the war to conclude by the end of 2023.

These miscalculations are hard to understand, for Israel was so traumatized by the horror of the Oct. 7 attack that the harshness of what was to come was quite predictable. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said early on that Israel was fighting “human animals” and he promised “a complete siege,” adding, “There will be no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel.” By one count , there were 18,000 Hebrew-language references to Gaza being “erased,” “destroyed” and “flattened” on X, formerly known as Twitter, in about the first six weeks after Oct. 7.

For me, watching as I reported from Israel and the West Bank, it felt ineffably sad, like a rerun of the invasion of Iraq: the delusions about a quick victory, the disregard for civilian lives, the lack of a local partner to establish order, the excessive optimism about outcomes. Another parallel with Iraq was the support for this war from Biden, who had similarly supported the Iraq war . “ I do not believe this is a rush to war,” he had said in 2002, underscoring how history rhymes. “I believe it is a march to peace and security.”

As time went on and Israel leveled entire neighborhoods and killed large numbers of women, children and aid workers, Biden became more critical of Israel. But while his rhetoric changed, his policies didn’t — and he repeatedly allowed his calls for restraint to be ignored. Indeed, in the first months of the war, Biden’s first serious move to impose accountability wasn’t aimed at Netanyahu but at UNRWA, the United Nations agency working desperately to prevent famine in Gaza.

After allegations in January that a dozen (later 14 ) of the agency’s 30,000 employees may have joined the Hamas terrorist attack and that many others were Hamas members, Biden suspended funding for UNRWA without waiting for confirmation. Investigations are now underway, and a small number of UNRWA staff members may have been involved in the Hamas attack, but there are growing doubts about the larger Israeli allegation of fundamental UNRWA complicity.

“They’ve been saying UNRWA is an arm of Hamas,” Senator Van Hollen told me. “There’s nothing — nothing! — in the intelligence to support that claim. That’s a flat-out lie.”

It now appears that while Biden was too slow to confront Netanyahu for killing Gazan children, he acted too hastily against the U.N. agency trying to save Gazan children. “We contributed,” Van Hollen noted, “to punishing over two million civilians who relied on UNRWA.”

American public opinion has moved rapidly on the war, with a majority of people now opposing Israel’s actions in Gaza. If the bloodshed and starvation continue, one can imagine a further shift — carrying increased political risks for Biden. While few of those disenchanted by Biden’s policies in Gaza seem likely to vote for Donald Trump, they could simply stay home on Election Day in crucial swing states like Michigan.

The anger among young progressives is particularly strong. I see it on college campuses. I’ve spoken to several Democratic members of Congress who say they can’t do public events for fear they will be shouted down. (I disapprove of disrupting events; I tell young people that if you want to change minds, shouting is less effective than asking pointed questions.) It’s worth remembering that Trump and a Republican Congress would almost certainly be less likely to restrain Israeli actions toward Palestinians, yet that’s not an effective argument for Democratic incumbents to make when they’re on the defensive.

Some of this anger, both in America and abroad, stems from what critics of the war perceive as a lack of urgency and even empathy on Biden’s part for Palestinian suffering. When he speaks of the victims of the Oct. 7 attack, I can feel his horror and disgust at the inhumanity of Hamas, but I don’t hear the same emotion about the deaths of Palestinian children in Gaza.

“There has just been a profound and visible empathy gap in how Biden talks about the two sets of victims in this conflict,” Konyndyk said. Shibley Telhami, a Middle East expert at the University of Maryland who has known Biden for many years, made the same point and argued that what seemed to finally move Biden (and much of the world) was the killing of World Central Kitchen’s foreign aid workers — even after about 190 Palestinian aid workers had already died.

We all have empathy gaps based on our backgrounds and loyalties, and supporters of Israel sometimes argue that critics of the Gaza war don’t seem to show the same compassion for starving Sudanese or Ethiopians that they do for Gazans. In Biden’s case, this isn’t the first time the issue has been discussed.

In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon and caused so many civilian casualties that everyone from President Ronald Reagan to Democratic senators expressed outrage. One exception: the young senator from Delaware.

Then-Senator Biden clashed with Israel’s hard-line prime minister, Menachem Begin, over West Bank settlements, and he deserves credit for being prescient in his opposition to land grabs for settlements. But Biden reportedly also told Begin that he favored an even harsher attack on Lebanon, even if this meant killing women and children, according to Israeli press reports .

In fairness, Biden has offered a strong moral voice in other humanitarian crises, including when he spoke up strongly for Muslims in Bosnia in 1995 and in Darfur in the 2000s. In both cases, he was impatient with talk and demanded action to ease suffering.

“We are still making threats instead of taking action,” Biden complained about Darfur in 2007, when George W. Bush was president.

Those of Biden’s generation sometimes complain that younger critics of Israel lack historical perspective and don’t appreciate the threats that Jews have faced, the unremitting determination of Israel’s enemies to destroy it and the difficulty of prosecuting a war where Hamas hides among civilians. Fair enough. All true.

But parallel arguments of naïveté were lodged against young critics of the Iraq and Vietnam wars. Supporters of the Vietnam War were shaped by memories of appeasement in the run-up to World War II and argued that it was imperative to stand up to the global tide of Communism. They were frustrated — correctly in many cases — that young leftists were soft on Communism and especially Maoism and didn’t understand the brutishness of the enemy. The war’s backers in the White House and the Pentagon acknowledged the suffering in Vietnam but argued that it was important to be tough-minded and keep perspective: With a little more effort it would be possible to uproot the enemy and score a decisive victory that would lay the groundwork for a better future. Listening to doves and showing restraint, they argued, would merely signal weakness and allow national dominoes to fall, resulting in a huge setback for freedom and democracy.

In retrospect, the backers of the Vietnam War didn’t understand the power of nationalism and vastly exaggerated the ability of even a powerful army to eradicate a homegrown enemy with nationalist credentials, while they were myopic about the human cost of their strategy and didn’t ask essential questions about its morality. Today it is the critics of the Vietnam and Iraq wars who have been largely validated. They may have known less history, but they possessed keener empathy.

Another parallel with the Vietnam War that worries some Democrats: The 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago was the site of chaotic antiwar protests that were mishandled and damaged the entire party at a time it needed to signal unity. That fall the presidential election went, by less than one percentage point, to the Republican Richard Nixon.

Oh, and where will the Democratic convention be held this year? Chicago, again.

The Biden administration called for moral clarity after the atrocities of Oct. 7, and that was appropriate. But moral clarity cannot be like a pair of glasses we put on and take off. Our shared humanity means recognizing that all children’s lives have equal value. If your heart breaks for victims on only one side of the Israel-Gaza border, then your failure is not of geopolitics but of humanity. If you care about the human rights of only Israelis or only Palestinians, then you don’t actually care about human rights.

Another way of putting it: The more than 1,000 children in Gaza who are now amputees, their suffering is partly on us.

Aside from the human toll, the war has also undermined America’s broader interests.

“Biden himself, but also America, now appears weak, thus less credible as a security partner, because Netanyahu has been completely and publicly unresponsive to tepid American requests, without there being any consequences,” Nabil Fahmy, a former Egyptian foreign minister, told me.

Jan Egeland, a former senior U.N. official who is now secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, told me that American moral authority has been greatly eroded by its nonstop transfer of weapons to prosecute the war in Gaza.

“When I now travel anywhere in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia or Latin America to urge humanitarian access or protection of civilians, I get a half-hour lecture on U.S.-led Western hypocrisy,” he said. He added that the question he always gets is: “If Russian occupation and attacks on civilians and infrastructure is so bad in Ukraine, how come you accept exactly the same when done against the Palestinians by Israel?”

Ukraine and Gaza represent very different kinds of conflicts, certainly. Russia invaded Ukraine, while Israel was the victim of a particularly barbaric attack by Hamas targeting civilians. Yet it’s also true that as many foreigners see it, America hails the “rules-based international order” in Ukraine while in the Middle East it arms a combatant that is ignoring a U.N. Security Council call for a cease-fire and that the International Court of Justice has said is plausibly committing genocide.

Chris Patten, the former European commissioner for external relations who is now formally Lord Patten of Barnes, is an admirer of Biden. But he told me that he believes on Gaza, “he’s been making a terrible, terrible error.”

“The knock-on effects are awful,” he said, benefiting Chinese and Russian narratives that the West employs double standards and doesn’t really care about principles.

Ukraine had seemed something of a triumph for Biden, who rallied Europe and led the international effort that stalled Russia’s invasion. But Biden’s war in Gaza undermines his war in Ukraine.

“There is ammunition that is badly needed in Ukraine but is being delivered to Israel,” Ben Hodges, a retired lieutenant general and commander of Army forces in Europe, told me.

The big winner of the Hamas attack and its aftermath, Hodges said, is the Kremlin.

This month, Biden belatedly showed a willingness to press Netanyahu and leverage the aid America provides. In a tense 30-minute call, he threatened to condition American weapons transfers on Israel’s actions to address humanitarian concerns in Gaza.

Tentative results were immediate. Israel said it would open the Erez crossing to northern Gaza to provide aid, and more aid has been allowed to enter Gaza.

Previously, Israel insisted that it was not blocking trucks, but as soon as Biden did get serious with Netanyahu, the number of trucks entering Gaza increased. I can’t help wondering: Why didn’t Biden demand this months earlier?

As Van Hollen told me: “When he did exercise some leverage, he got more results in one hour than he’s gotten in six months.”

Still, it remains unclear how much has changed. Israel seems more cooperative about getting aid across the border into Gaza, but the United Nations emphasizes that what matters is aid being delivered over those last few miles to people who are starving. Disputes about aid are likely to continue, in part because more than two-thirds of Jewish Israelis oppose allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza, according to an opinion poll in February.

In the past, Biden repeatedly resisted meaningful limits on arms transfers. Under pressure from Democratic senators, he issued National Security Memorandum 20 , which restated American law that puts humanitarian conditions on military transfers — but then the administration announced that Israel was meeting the requirements, which many outsiders doubted.

The administration must issue another report by May 8 about whether Israel is meeting its humanitarian obligations, but many critics of the war expect a whitewash.

Many Biden supporters are exasperated. “The current approach is not working,” Senator Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat, said in a statement calling on Biden to withhold bombs from Israel. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was among 40 House members who sent a similar letter to Biden.

“There’s a growing group of House and Senate members who are frustrated with the failure of the Biden administration to apply leverage,” noted Senator Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat who was among the first senators to call for a cease-fire.

Biden’s hope for months has been a temporary halt in fighting that the administration could then use to frantically negotiate a landmark Saudi-Israeli-American deal that would normalize relations and lay the groundwork for a two-state solution. This would be the diplomatic equivalent of pulling an elephant out of a hat.

But it hasn’t happened and it’s not clear what Biden’s backup plan is. “The message I and others have carried is you can’t count on such a deal being worked out,” Merkley said. “And meanwhile the humanitarian disaster is getting worse every single day.”

The most dire scenario ahead may be a multifront war involving Gaza and Hezbollah or Iran. One of my scarier discussions with an Israeli official recently was his advocacy of a first strike on Hezbollah, and a poll found that 53 percent of Israeli Jews favor such an all-out attack on Hezbollah. That would, I believe, be a catastrophe for the region.

There’s also the possibility of an Israeli invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza without any serious effort to move civilians out of the way. We may see a full-blown famine in Gaza, or, with no authority in place, Gaza might linger (even if Hamas is a spent force) as a shattered, anarchic territory dominated by militant extremists and criminal gangs. Netanyahu seems to have no long-term plan for Gaza (or the West Bank) that would be acceptable to the outside world.

So far the war in Gaza has, according to authorities there, killed roughly 34,000 people , including about 13,800 children. The toll includes some 484 health workers, 100 journalists and 200 aid workers. The war has also damaged or destroyed up to 57 percent of the territory’s buildings. There is no end in sight, and I don’t see a path for Biden out of the mire in which he has placed himself that does not entail pursuing a fundamentally tougher and more independent path.

That means insisting that Netanyahu show far more restraint in warfare and both allow more aid into Gaza and ensure it is actually delivered to starving people. And if there are no immediate results, Biden must stop the flows of offensive weapons, for that is the step that will finally get the attention of the Israel Defense Forces and of all the country’s leaders.

This is a sad column to have to write. Biden has generally been an impressive foreign policy president, I believe, particularly astute in building connections in Asia to meet the challenge of China. I think he’s personally a good man with a compassionate heart.

That makes his complicity in the cataclysm of Gaza all the more tragic. As a young man, Biden watched Lyndon Johnson’s dream of being remembered for his “Great Society” collapse in the face of youthful opposition to an unpopular and cruel foreign war, with Johnson’s failures leading to the election of a corrupt president from the other party. I hope Biden takes action to avoid a repeat.

Biden might listen in particular to one close adviser who is apparently in anguish over Gaza — for she is right.

“Stop it,” Jill Biden reportedly told her husband. “Stop it now, Joe.”

The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips . And here’s our email: [email protected] .

Follow the New York Times Opinion section on Facebook , Instagram , TikTok , WhatsApp , X and Threads .

Nicholas Kristof became a columnist for The Times Opinion desk in 2001 and has won two Pulitzer Prizes. His new memoir is “ Chasing Hope: A Reporter's Life .” @ NickKristof

Advertisement

June 1, 2020

Due to travel restrictions, plans are only available with travel dates on or after

Due to travel restrictions, plans are only available with effective start dates on or after

Ukraine; Belarus; Moldova, Republic of; North Korea, Democratic People's Rep; Russia; Israel

This is a test environment. Please proceed to AllianzTravelInsurance.com and remove all bookmarks or references to this site.

Allianz Travel

Use this tool to calculate all purchases like ski-lift passes, show tickets, or even rental equipment.

Allianz - Travel

Travel Insurance 101: How Travel Insurance Works

How Travel Insurance Works

What is travel insurance?

Travel insurance is a plan you purchase that protects you from certain financial risks and losses that can occur while traveling. These losses can be minor, like a delayed suitcase, or significant, like a last-minute trip cancellation or a medical emergency overseas.

In addition to financial protection, the other huge benefit of travel insurance is access to assistance services , wherever you are in the world. Our elite team of travel and medical experts can arrange medical treatment in an emergency, monitor your care, serve as interpreters, help you replace lost passports and so much more. Sometimes, they even save travelers’ lives.

A few things you should know about travel insurance:

  • Benefits vary by plan. It’s important to choose a plan that fits your needs, your budget and your travel plans. Here are definitions of all available travel insurance benefits.
  • Travel insurance can’t cover every possible situation. Allianz Travel Insurance is  named perils  travel insurance, which means it covers only the specific situations, events, and losses included in your plan documents, and only under the conditions we describe.
  • Travel insurance is designed to cover  unforeseeable events —not things you could easily see coming, or things within your control. If, for example,  you wait to buy insurance for your beach trip until after a named hurricane is hustling toward your destination, your losses wouldn’t be covered.

How does travel insurance work?

In most scenarios, travel insurance reimburses you for your covered financial losses after you file a claim and the claim is approved. Filing a claim means submitting proof of your loss to Allianz Global Assistance, so that we can verify what happened and reimburse you for your covered losses. You can  file a claim online , or do it on your phone with the  Allyz ® TravelSmart app .

How does this work in real life? Let’s say you purchase the OneTrip Prime Plan , which includes trip cancellation benefits, to protect your upcoming cruise to Cozumel. Two days before departure, you experience a high fever and chest pain. Your doctor diagnoses bacterial pneumonia and advises you to cancel the trip. When you notify the cruise line, they tell you it’s too late to receive a refund.

Without travel insurance, you’d lose the money you spent on your vacation. Fortunately, a serious, disabling illness can be considered a covered reason for trip cancellation , which means you can be reimbursed for your prepaid, nonrefundable trip costs. Once you’re feeling better, you gather the required documents—such as your airfare and cruise line receipts and information about any refunds you did or did not receive—and you file a claim . You can even choose to receive your reimbursement by direct deposit, to your debit card, or via check.

Sometimes, this process works a little differently. Travel insurance may pay your expenses upfront if you require emergency medical treatment or emergency transportation while traveling overseas. Or, with the  OneTrip Premier and OneTrip Prime plans, you may be eligible to receive a fixed payment of $100 per day for a covered travel delay or $100 for a covered baggage delay . No receipts for purchases are required; all you need is proof of your covered delay.

Many travelers are wondering: Can COVID-19 be considered a covered reason for trip cancellation? And can travel insurance help if you become seriously ill with COVID-19 while traveling? Most of our travel insurance plans now include epidemic-related covered reasons (benefits vary by plan and are not available in all jurisdictions). The Epidemic Coverage Endorsement adds covered reasons to select benefits for certain losses related to COVID-19 and any future epidemic. To see if your plan includes this endorsement and what it covers, please look for "Epidemic Coverage Endorsement" on your Declarations of Coverage or Letter of Confirmation. Terms, conditions and exclusions apply. Benefits may not cover the full cost of your loss. All benefits are subject to maximum limits of liability, which may in some cases be subject to sublimits and daily maximums.

> Learn more: Travel Insurance and COVID-19: The Epidemic Coverage Endorsement Explained

How to choose a travel insurance plan

There’s a wide range of Allianz Travel Insurance plans, each with different benefits and benefit limits. So how do you know which is best for you? To begin, get a quote for your upcoming trip. When you enter your age, trip costs and trip dates, we can recommend a few plans for you. Then, you can compare the costs and benefits of each.

If you’re a budget-conscious traveler who’s traveling in the U.S., you may like the OneTrip Cancellation Plus Plan . It includes trip cancellation, trip interruption and trip delay benefits.

If you want protection in case of medical emergencies overseas, but you have few pre-paid trip expenses, you may consider the OneTrip Emergency Medical Plan . This affordable plan includes emergency medical and emergency transportation benefits, as well as other post-departure benefits, but not trip cancellation/interruption.

If you want the reassurance of carrying substantial travel insurance benefits, the best fit may be the OneTrip Prime Plan . This plan also covers kids 17 and under for free when traveling with a parent or grandparent (not available on policies issued to Pennsylvania residents).

If you’re planning several trips in the next 12 months, consider annual travel insurance such as the AllTrips Prime Plan . It gives you affordable protection for a full year of travel, including benefits for trip cancellation and interruption; emergency medical care; lost/stolen or delayed baggage; and Rental Car Damage and theft protection (available to residents of most states).  

> Find the right travel insurance plan for you 

How to get the most from your travel insurance plan

Don’t wait too long to buy travel insurance! The best time to buy travel insurance is immediately after you’ve completed your travel arrangements. The earlier you buy insurance, the bigger your coverage window. Also, you must buy your plan within 14 days of making your initial trip deposit in order to be eligible for the pre-existing medical condition benefit (not available on all plans).

Read your plan documents before you leave. If you're not completely satisfied with your plan, you have 15 days (or more, depending on your state of residence) to request a refund, provided you haven't started your trip or initiated a claim. Premiums are non-refundable after this period.

Call us when you need help. If you have questions about how travel insurance works, or how to file a claim, or which benefits you need, please contact us ! Our representatives are available 24/7. If you’re already traveling, and you’re facing a travel crisis or just need some advice, call our emergency assistance hotline .

> Read more about how we can help

Related Articles

  • What Does Travel Insurance Cover?
  • How Travel Insurance Covers Family Members
  • Trip Delay, Trip Interruption and Trip Cancellation Insurance Explained

Allianz - AZ_OPM_Insurance_Partner

Get a Quote

{{travelBanText}} {{travelBanDateFormatted}}.

{{annualTravelBanText}} {{travelBanDateFormatted}}.

If your trip involves multiple destinations, please enter the destination where you’ll be spending the most time. It is not required to list all destinations on your policy.

Age of Traveler

Ages: {{quote.travelers_ages}}

If you were referred by a travel agent, enter the ACCAM number provided by your agent.

Travel Dates

{{quote.travel_dates ? quote.travel_dates : "Departure - Return" | formatDates}}

Plan Start Date

{{quote.start_date ? quote.start_date : "Date"}}

Share this Page

  • {{errorMsgSendSocialEmail}}

Your browser does not support iframes.

Popular Travel Insurance Plans

  • Annual Travel Insurance
  • Cruise Insurance
  • Domestic Travel Insurance
  • International Travel Insurance
  • Rental Car Insurance

View all of our travel insurance products

Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. Please see your plan for full details. Benefits/Coverage may vary by state, and sublimits may apply.

Allianz - TRIP_logo-50

Insurance benefits underwritten by BCS Insurance Company (OH, Administrative Office: 2 Mid America Plaza, Suite 200, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181), rated “A” (Excellent) by A.M. Best Co., under BCS Form No. 52.201 series or 52.401 series, or Jefferson Insurance Company (NY, Administrative Office: 9950 Mayland Drive, Richmond, VA 23233), rated “A+” (Superior) by A.M. Best Co., under Jefferson Form No. 101-C series or 101-P series, depending on your state of residence and plan chosen. A+ (Superior) and A (Excellent) are the 2nd and 3rd highest, respectively, of A.M. Best's 13 Financial Strength Ratings. Plans only available to U.S. residents and may not be available in all jurisdictions. Allianz Global Assistance and Allianz Travel Insurance are marks of AGA Service Company dba Allianz Global Assistance or its affiliates. Allianz Travel Insurance products are distributed by Allianz Global Assistance, the licensed producer and administrator of these plans and an affiliate of Jefferson Insurance Company. The insured shall not receive any special benefit or advantage due to the affiliation between AGA Service Company and Jefferson Insurance Company. Plans include insurance benefits and assistance services. Any Non-Insurance Assistance services purchased are provided through AGA Service Company. Except as expressly provided under your plan, you are responsible for charges you incur from third parties. Contact AGA Service Company at  800-284-8300 or 9950 Mayland Drive, Richmond, VA 23233 or [email protected] .

Return To Log In

Your session has expired. We are redirecting you to our sign-in page.

  • Daily Crossword
  • Word Puzzle
  • Word Finder

Word of the Day

  • Synonym of the Day
  • Word of the Year
  • Language stories
  • All featured
  • Gender and sexuality
  • All pop culture
  • Grammar Coach ™
  • Writing hub
  • Grammar essentials
  • Commonly confused
  • All writing tips
  • Pop culture
  • Writing tips

Advertisement

  • acquired immune deficiency syndome: a disease of the immune system characterized by increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections, as pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and candidiasis, to certain cancers, as Kaposi's sarcoma, and to neurological disorders: caused by a retrovirus and transmitted chiefly through blood or blood products that enter the body's bloodstream, especially by sexual contact or contaminated hypodermic needles.

acronym for

  • acquired immune (or immuno-)deficiency syndrome: a condition, caused by a virus, in which certain white blood cells (lymphocytes) are destroyed, resulting in loss of the body's ability to protect itself against disease. AIDS is transmitted by sexual intercourse, through infected blood and blood products, and through the placenta
  • Short for acquired immune deficiency syndrome. An infectious disease of the immune system caused by an human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). AIDS is characterized by a decrease in the number of helper T cells, which causes a severe immunodeficiency that leaves the body susceptible to a variety of potentially fatal infections. The virus is transmitted in infected bodily fluids such as semen and blood, as through sexual intercourse, the use of contaminated hypodermic syringes, and placental transfer between mother and fetus. Although a cure or vaccine is not yet available, a number of antiviral drugs can decrease the viral load and subsequent infections in patients with AIDS.
  • Acronym for a cquired i mmune d eficiency s yndrome, a fatal disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus , or HIV. Believed to have originated in Africa , AIDS has become an epidemic , infecting tens of millions of people worldwide. The virus, which is transmitted from one individual to another through the exchange of body fluids (such as blood or semen ), attacks white blood cells , thereby causing the body to lose its capacity to ward off infection . As a result, many AIDS patients die of opportunistic infections that strike their debilitated bodies. AIDS first appeared in the United States in 1981, primarily among homosexuals and intravenous drug users who shared needles, but throughout the world, it is also transmitted by heterosexual contact. Today, scientists are hopeful that AIDS can be managed by new drugs, such as protease inhibitors , and need not be fatal. ( See AZT .)

Discover More

Word history and origins.

Origin of AIDS 1

Related Words

  • acquired immune deficiency syndrome
  • sexually transmitted disease

[ gal- uh - maw -free ]

Start each day with the Word of the Day in your inbox!

By clicking "Sign Up", you are accepting Dictionary.com Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies.

Cambridge Dictionary

  • Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of aid in English

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

  • Foreign aid is badly needed to ameliorate the effects of the drought .
  • humanitarian aid
  • We need to look at the logistics of the whole aid operation .
  • Thousands of lives will be at stake if emergency aid does not arrive in the city soon .
  • contrivance
  • machine tool
  • precision instrument
  • utility belt

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

  • help Can I help you get that?
  • aid The project is designed to aid poorer countries.
  • assist The army arrived to assist in the search.
  • collaborate We collaborated on the project.
  • cooperate Several countries are cooperating in the relief effort.
  • benefit The children have benefited greatly from the new facilities.
  • Discover how eating raw food helps balance your body and aids digestion .
  • Your donation will help aid flood victims .
  • Doctors hoped that moving to a warmer climate would aid his recovery .
  • Police arrested a number of people suspected of aiding the terrorists .
  • Fruit and vegetables contain acids that aid the absorption of calcium into the body .
  • accommodative
  • any port in a storm idiom
  • assist with something
  • errand of mercy idiom
  • facilitation
  • financial assistance
  • give someone a leg up idiom
  • run errands idiom
  • share a platform idiom
  • start (something) off

aid | American Dictionary

Aid | business english, examples of aid, collocations with aid.

These are words often used in combination with aid .

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

Translations of aid

Get a quick, free translation!

{{randomImageQuizHook.quizId}}

Word of the Day

the fact that people or animals do what they are told to do

Binding, nailing, and gluing: talking about fastening things together

Binding, nailing, and gluing: talking about fastening things together

travel aid define

Learn more with +Plus

  • Recent and Recommended {{#preferredDictionaries}} {{name}} {{/preferredDictionaries}}
  • Definitions Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
  • Grammar and thesaurus Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English Grammar Thesaurus
  • Pronunciation British and American pronunciations with audio English Pronunciation
  • English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
  • English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
  • English–Dutch Dutch–English
  • English–French French–English
  • English–German German–English
  • English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
  • English–Italian Italian–English
  • English–Japanese Japanese–English
  • English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
  • English–Polish Polish–English
  • English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
  • English–Spanish Spanish–English
  • English–Swedish Swedish–English
  • Dictionary +Plus Word Lists
  • with the aid of something
  • to someone's aid
  • in aid of someone / something
  • aid and abet someone
  • American    Noun
  • aid and abet
  • Collocations
  • Translations
  • All translations

Add aid to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

{{message}}

Something went wrong.

There was a problem sending your report.

House Republicans release aid bills for Israel and Ukraine, eyeing weekend House votes

Mike Johnson speaks to reporters

WASHINGTON — Facing a divided party and pressure to act, House Speaker Mike Johnson rolled out three bills Wednesday to provide assistance to Israel , Ukraine and Taiwan , with the hope of holding final votes on Saturday.

The bills represent a major test of Johnson’s ability to navigate a thicket of political and global challenges with a wafer-thin majority. And it comes as Johnson, R-La., faces a serious threat to his gavel from Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene , R-Ga., and Thomas Massie , R-Ky.

Johnson's biggest challenge is Ukraine funding , an issue that has bitterly divided the GOP. He has been squeezed by conservative security hawks who want to help Ukraine fend off Russia’s aggression and by an empowered isolationist wing that is feeding off former President Donald Trump’s criticism of NATO and prior Ukraine aid measures.

Multiple Republicans say they oppose any funding for Ukraine, meaning that a significant share of Democrats will be required to carry that measure over the finish line. Many of the provisions in the bills resemble the package passed by the Senate in one bundle, which Johnson rejected and refused to put to a House vote.

In a message to members before releasing the legislation, Johnson said there would be "three bills that will fund America’s national security interests and allies in Israel, the Indo-Pacific, and Ukraine, including a loan structure for aid , and enhanced strategy and accountability."

He said Republican leadership will come forward with an amendment process "alongside a fourth bill that includes the REPO Act ," which is aimed at seizing Russian assets to benefit Ukraine; the House-passed bill to ban TikTok in the U.S. unless it divests from its China-based owner; as well as "sanctions and other measures to confront Russia, China, and Iran."

“We expect the vote on final passage on these bills to be on Saturday evening,” Johnson said in a text message obtained by NBC News.

He said there will also be a "border security bill that includes the core components of H.R.2" — a conservative, House-passed immigration bill — moving under a separate process. That measure serves as a sweetener for reticent conservatives who are unhappy that the aid bills don't include domestic immigration provisions.

Swift conservative pushback

Multiple House conservatives pushed back immediately on social media Wednesday after Johnson's message went out, complaining that the border measures weren't directly tied to Ukraine funding.

"The Republican Speaker of the House is seeking a rule to pass almost $100 billion in foreign aid — while unquestionably, dangerous criminals, terrorists, & fentanyl pour across our border. The border 'vote' in this package is a watered-down dangerous cover vote. I will oppose," Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, wrote on X .

Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., the most recent chair of the hard-right Freedom Caucus, said: "Anything less than tying Ukraine aid to real border security fails to live up to @SpeakerJohnson's own words just several weeks ago. Our constituents demand — and deserve — more from us."

Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, earlier called aid to Ukraine unnecessary, saying: “I’m not giving them a nickel today, tomorrow or next week."

“Putin is not going into Poland. I don’t care what you say. Besides, anyway, it doesn’t really matter because ... when Donald Trump wins, Putin’s leavin’. Putin’s leavin’ Ukraine,” Nehls said ahead of the bill’s release, without explaining his logic.

House Democrats have repeatedly called on Johnson to bring up a Senate-passed foreign aid package instead, calling it the best — if not only — path to getting a bill on Biden's desk. They have posted a "discharge petition" with 195 signatories to end-run Johnson and force a vote on that bill. It needs 218 votes to come up, meaning it will need the backing of some Republicans in addition to Democrats.

At a Wednesday meeting with Democrats, House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., told members that they need to use their “personal relationships” with Republicans to garner support for the discharge petition, according to two people familiar with her comments.

Treasury Secretary Yellen dials up pressure

At a bilateral meeting later Wednesday with Ukraine Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen plans to dial up the pressure on House Republicans to act.

“The failure of House Republicans to act to support Ukraine in this pivotal moment of the war for so long has been inexcusable—and detrimental to our national security,” Yellen will say, according to a Treasury source. “Every moment of delay by House Republicans strengthens Putin and emboldens America’s adversaries around the world who are closely watching to see if we, the United States, maintains its resolve to support a democratic Ukraine as it fends off an autocratic Russia.”

Meanwhile, Greene has not said when she might force a vote on her "motion to vacate" the speaker's chair, which would take a simple majority to remove Johnson from his job. Her effort gained a cosponsor in Massie on Tuesday, who predicted Johnson would be voted out.

It's not clear the votes are there to oust Johnson. Many conservatives, including some who voted to remove former Speaker Kevin McCarthy, have not joined the effort to oust Johnson. Some Democrats have also said they'll vote to protect Johnson from a motion to depose him.

But Massie said that would only hurt his standing with the GOP in the long term.

“Then he goes further in the hole with Republicans. He becomes toxic to the conference. For every Democrat who comes to his aid he’ll lose 2 to 3 more Republicans,” Massie said. “He doesn’t have much shelf life after that.”

Johnson struck a defiant tone Tuesday when asked about the threat to his gavel, calling it “absurd” while saying he’s “not concerned” about the motion and will continue to do his job.

travel aid define

Sahil Kapur is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.

travel aid define

Rebecca is a producer and off-air reporter covering Congress for NBC News, managing coverage of the House.

Forbes Daily: What’s Next For TikTok? House Moves On Potential Ban

Plus: Meet The Billionaire Betting Big On An Idyllic Island Retreat In The Philippines

  • Share to Facebook
  • Share to Twitter
  • Share to Linkedin

This is a published version of the Forbes Daily newsletter , you can sign-up to get Forbes Daily in your inbox here .

Good morning,

Stay-at-home parents may not hold a full-time job, but they work just as much, if not more, than someone with a 9-to-5.

In the U.S., a stay-at-home parent of two children does roughly 200 combined hours of cleaning, shopping, cooking, childcare and other tasks each month, a new study shows. In some cities, it would cost between $4,000 and $5,200 per month to outsource that labor . On average, that would come out to $1 million over the course of raising two children for 20 years in the U.S. cities studied—San Francisco, New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago.

It’s not just mothers who are doing all that work: Dads now represent 19% of stay-at-home parents, Pew Research Center found.

BREAKING NEWS

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks to the press after the House passed a major aid package for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan and also voted to ban TikTok at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on April 20, 2024.

The House passed foreign aid packages on Saturday that would deliver $95 billion in aid to Ukraine , Israel and the U.S.’s Indo-Pacific partners including Taiwan, plus a national security bill containing a potential TikTok ban —requiring Chinese parent company ByteDance to divest within nine months. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) called for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to resign, but few of her colleagues have joined her.

The foreign aid bills will now go before the Senate as soon as this week before heading to President Joe Biden, who has promised to sign the legislation. It’s unlikely TikTok , or the Chinese government, will agree to the terms of a forced sale , the company has criticized the proposal as a free speech violation , a blow to the economy and has spent $5 million on ads against the legislation since mid-March, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. TikTok has also indicated it could challenge the legislation in court.

BUSINESS + FINANCE

An unfinished 737 MAX sits outside Boeing's factory in Renton, Wash.

Boeing’s woes, combined with supply chain issues at rival Airbus and engine durability issues that have grounded planes for inspections, have led airlines to slow pilot hiring and reduce flights for the upcoming summer travel season . That could mean higher fares in some markets and increased risk of disruption as airlines rely more on older planes, which are more prone to mechanical failures, analysts say.

Chelsea Mandel, founder and managing director of Ascension Advisory, believes she has a novel solution to the seemingly insurmountable challenge of funding small businesses : “sale leasebacks,” typically used by institutional investors in billion dollar transactions. In a sale leaseback, a business sells some of its assets, like property or equipment, and then rents or leases it back so that it can continue operating as it did before.

TECH + INNOVATION ​​

ILLUSTRATION BY PHILIP SMITH FOR FORBES

Venture investors like Andreessen Horowitz are swooning over the so-called “Gundo Bros,” who are building American hardware and software companies in El Segundo, the neighborhood adjacent to LAX airport and home to major defense contractors. But not everyone has been enthusiastic about the movement, as online commentators questioned its glaring gender disparity.

Since the 2014 police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, one company has capitalized on the demand for police accountability more than any other to become the nation’s largest manufacturer of body-worn cameras : Axon. But now an alliance of cities has sued Axon, alleging that the company has committed antitrust violations, abused its market power, and forced cities to pay exorbitant fees for a basic, but crucial, piece of law enforcement tech.

Meta—the parent company of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp— released a standalone AI chatbot and a powerful open source model, Llama 3, positioning itself as a major competitor to bots from the likes of Google and ChatGPT. It’s the first time its AI assistant will be available outside of Meta’s social media ecosystem as an independent product, allowing the company to contend more directly with other AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

SCIENCE + HEALTHCARE

The American College of Physicians issued new guidelines that for the first time recommended the use of GLP-1s like Ozempic and Wegovy to treat Type 2 diabetes , though it could exacerbate the ongoing shortages of several of the drugs. The high costs of GLP-1s, which can go for upwards of around $1,070, could also be a barrier to providing patients with access to treatment, according to an accompanying editorial from Fatima Syed, an internal medicine doctor at Duke University’s Division of General Internal Medicine.

DAILY COVER STORY

Meet the billionaire betting big on an idyllic island retreat in the philippines.

Boats moored at Port Barton in San Vicente, which serves as the jumping off point to the tropical resorts of El Nido in the northern tip of Palawan.

TOPLINE The pitch is for tropical paradise: turquoise waters that lap a pristine shoreline fringed by lush, mist-streaked greenery. Philippine property giant Megaworld extolls on its Facebook page the virtues of Palawan island, the largest of a 1,780-island group by the same name that hangs to the left of the island nation in the Pacific. Here, Megaworld is pursuing its most complex project yet, a resort and residential estate that will be the island’s biggest real estate development to date .

On 462 hectares in San Vicente, a quiet, relatively untouched corner of Palawan’s northern coast, known for its rich biodiversity, virgin forests, steep karst cliffs and the longest white sand beach in the Philippines, Megaworld has a 15-year plan to raise a township from among the coconut trees—an ecofriendly addition, it says, to its hospitality, office, retail and residential portfolio that spans the country. When finished, Paragua Coastown will include two 10-story hotels, a residential condominium, villas, a hospital, a school, and wellness-related centers.

Megaworld, owned by billionaire Andrew Tan’s spirits-to-property conglomerate Alliance Global Group, is pouring over 40 billion pesos ($720 million) into the venture—a tenth of what it plans to spend on building townships across the Philippines in the next five years. The company is banking on getting in on the ground floor as the island remakes itself into one of the country’s top tourist destinations .

Some 1.5 million people, of which about 650,000 were overseas travelers, visited the island in 2023, nearly twice as many as the previous year, according to government figures, as tourists return to the Philippines post-Covid.

San Vicente is seen as the next frontier in the island’s commercial boom, catching up to Palawan’s other island centers where tourism is flourishing, including its capital, Puerto Princesa City, and El Nido, a municipality comprised of small islands at Palawan’s northern tip that has in recent years become a playground for backpackers and jetsetters alike.

WHY IT MATTERS Ana Margarita Lustre-Malijan, vice president at local hotelier and construction firm Arlustre Group, believes such developments will be a huge boon for Palawan , bringing jobs and income to the island where about 15% of the population falls below the poverty line. It could also be the tipping point to improve accessibility to the area.

MORE Billionaire Lucio Tan’s Philippine Airlines To Expand Fleet After Posting Record Profit

FACTS AND COMMENTS

Millions of people across several states and territories in India went to the polls Friday , as the world’s most populous nation began its general elections. Unsurprisingly, it’s set to be the biggest democratic exercise in history :

968.8 million: The number of people eligible to cast their vote in the general elections, according to India’s electoral commission

Over 2,700: The number of political parties registered with the electoral commission

67.4%: The total turnout of voters in the 2019 general elections

STRATEGY AND SUCCESS

Many employees complain about micromanaging from managers, but too much freedom can also be harmful . You may not receive critical feedback, your good work could go unnoticed, and working too independently leads to little to no collaboration with teammates. It’s critical to balance your autonomy with clear expectations and communication to ensure your efforts are guided, acknowledged and rewarded appropriately.

Tesla will recall nearly 3,900 Cybertruck pickups because of a defective part that could dislodge and increase the risk of a crash. What part is it?

B. Parking brake

C. Accelerator pedal

D. Steering wheel

Check your answer.

ACROSS THE NEWSROOM

Forbes’ CFO newsletter will help you keep up with the most important corporate finance headlines. Click here to sign up .

Danielle Chemtob

  • Editorial Standards
  • Reprints & Permissions

IMAGES

  1. 10 essential travel aids to ensure a smooth, comfortable and secure

    travel aid define

  2. ViiO Travel Aid : A Great Navigation Tool for Visually Impaired People

    travel aid define

  3. ViiO Travel Aid : A Great Navigation Tool for Visually Impaired People

    travel aid define

  4. Travel Aid Official Site

    travel aid define

  5. 15 Travel First Aid Kit Essentials You Need

    travel aid define

  6. SmartCane

    travel aid define

VIDEO

  1. Final Project: English Travel Aid

  2. Garmin Travel Aid

  3. 3/26/24 Self-Care Tuesdays: The Places We Go When the Heart Is Open

COMMENTS

  1. Travel aid

    Define travel aid. travel aid synonyms, travel aid pronunciation, travel aid translation, English dictionary definition of travel aid. to help or assist: I hope you will aid me with the project. Not to be confused with: aide - an assistant: I have so much work that I need an aide.

  2. Electronic Travel AIDS: New Directions for Research

    Electronic Travel Aid (ETA) Also electronic mobility aid. Any one of several electronic devices on the market designed to detect obstacles or to orient the blind or visually-impaired traveler. Examples include the Russell Pathsounder, the Laser Cane, the SONA aid system. ... An administrative definition used by some federal, state and private ...

  3. AID Definition & Meaning

    AID definition: to provide support for or relief to; help. See examples of AID used in a sentence.

  4. Travelers Aid International

    Travelers Aid International. Travelers Aid International is a global network that serves as a human services support system worldwide by facilitating interactions between social service agencies, airports, train stations, and other transit hubs in order to help children and adults who become stranded while traveling or are in distress or at ...

  5. What Is Foreign Aid? Forms of Aid, Statistics, and Examples

    Foreign aid is money that one country voluntarily transfers to another, which can take the form of a gift, a grant or a loan. In the United States, the term usually refers only to military and ...

  6. AID

    AID meaning: 1. money, food, or equipment that is given to help a country or group of people: 2. in order to…. Learn more.

  7. Wikipedia

    Wikipedia

  8. Foreign aid

    Foreign aid can involve a transfer of financial resources or commodities (e.g., food or military equipment) or technical advice and training. The resources can take the form of grants or concessional credits (e.g., export credits). The most common type of foreign aid is official development assistance (ODA), which is assistance given to promote ...

  9. foreign aid summary

    For the full article, see foreign aid . foreign aid, Transfer of capital, goods, or services from one country to another. Foreign aid may be given in the form of capital transfers or technical assistance and training for either civilian or military purposes. Its use in the modern era began in the 18th century, when Prussia subsidized some of ...

  10. Travel aid synonyms, travel aid antonyms

    Synonyms for travel aid in Free Thesaurus. Antonyms for travel aid. 106 synonyms for aid: financial assistance, help, relief, support, funds, benefit, gifts, charity ...

  11. AID

    AID meaning: 1. a piece of equipment that helps you to do something: 2. using something to help you: 3. help…. Learn more.

  12. aid verb

    to help someone or something to do something, especially by making it easier synonym assist aid in something/in doing something The new test should aid in the early detection of the disease. aid somebody (to do something) This feature is designed to aid inexperienced users. aid something Aided by heat and strong winds, the fire quickly spread.

  13. aid noun

    Culture aid aid Most aid (= money, food and equipment) is given to the world's poorest countries to help reduce poverty. Projects paid for by aid money are often aimed at improving local housing and water supply, agriculture, health and education. Training local people is a central part of many programmes.

  14. aid

    definition 1: help, assistance, or relief. Many agencies provided aid to the disaster victims. With the aid of her friends, she was able to manage pretty well. He can walk with the aid of a cane. synonyms: assistance, backing, hand, help, relief. antonyms: bar, hindrance, impediment.

  15. AID definition in American English

    aid in American English. (eid) transitive verb. 1. to provide support for or relief to; help. to aid the homeless victims of the fire. 2. to promote the progress or accomplishment of; facilitate. intransitive verb.

  16. US Aid to Shell-Starved Ukraine Could Arrive in Days After Senate

    R: US military aid delivered to Ukraine, is unloaded from a plane at the Boryspil International Airport outside Kyiv, Ukraine, February 13, 2022. REUTERS. The Pentagon is expediting preparation ...

  17. travelers aid Crossword Clue

    travelers aid Crossword Clue. The Crossword Solver found 30 answers to "travelers aid", 4 letters crossword clue. The Crossword Solver finds answers to classic crosswords and cryptic crossword puzzles. Enter the length or pattern for better results. Click the answer to find similar crossword clues . Enter a Crossword Clue.

  18. Opinion

    "When I now travel anywhere in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia or Latin America to urge humanitarian access or protection of civilians, I get a half-hour lecture on U.S.-led Western ...

  19. AID

    AID definition: 1. money, food, or equipment that is given to help a country or group of people: 2. in order to…. Learn more.

  20. Travel Insurance 101: How Travel Insurance Works

    In most scenarios, travel insurance reimburses you for your covered financial losses after you file a claim and the claim is approved. Filing a claim means submitting proof of your loss to Allianz Global Assistance, so that we can verify what happened and reimburse you for your covered losses. You can file a claim online, or do it on your phone ...

  21. AID Definition & Usage Examples

    Aid definition: to provide support for or relief to; help. See examples of AID used in a sentence.

  22. PDF FACT SHEET: U.S. Department of Education's 2024 Title IX Final Rule

    On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education released its final rule to fully effectuate Title IX's promise that no person experiences sex discrimination in federally funded education. Before issuing the proposed regulations, the Department received feedback on its Title IX regulations, as amended in 2020, from a wide variety of ...

  23. AID

    AID definition: 1. a piece of equipment that helps you to do something: 2. using something to help you: 3. help…. Learn more.

  24. What to know about the TikTok ban bill the House passed

    Published 9:00 PM EDT, Sat April 20, 2024. Link Copied! A view shows the office of TikTok after the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that would give TikTok's Chinese ...

  25. House Republicans release aid bills for Israel and Ukraine, eyeing

    House Speaker Mike Johnson told members that they expect to vote on separate aid bills for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies "Saturday evening" after an amendment process.

  26. Forbes Daily: What's Next For TikTok? House Moves On Potential Ban

    DREW ANGERER/AFP via Getty Images. The House passed foreign aid packages on Saturday that would deliver $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and the U.S.'s Indo-Pacific partners including ...

  27. House passes legislation that could ban TikTok in the US amid high

    A potential US ban against TikTok took a major step toward becoming reality on Saturday as House lawmakers approved a hot-button bill targeting the app as part of a wide-ranging aid package for ...