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| Friday, 11 February 2005 |
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Bush boosts aid to tsunami-hit nations WASHINGTON - Thursday (Reuters) President George W. Bush increased his aid pledge to Asian nations hit by the Dec. 26 tsunami by $600 million to jump-start reconstruction efforts. The new money, which must be approved by Congress, is part of a $950 million package that will also cover the cost of U.S. relief efforts to date. Bush pledged $350 million in tsunami aid on Dec. 31. "We will use these resources to provide assistance and to work with the affected nations on rebuilding vital infrastructure," Bush said in a statement. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said the relief effort was of strategic importance to the United States, particularly for relations with Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country. "Above and beyond the humanitarian considerations, which would be compelling enough, we have an enormous interest in seeing this succeed," Wolfowitz said, citing Bush's second-term goal of promoting democracy in the Muslim world. Andrew Natsios, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, characterized the U.S. government's response as "the most generous and the most extensive in American history." The White House said the package would include $339 million for reconstruction, from rebuilding roads and schools to major water systems. There is $168 million to provide food, shelter and housing, and money is also included to bolster tsunami early warning systems. Bush plans to send the $950 million request to Congress on Monday as part of an $81 billion package to fund U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bush included in the tsunami package $346 million to reimburse the Agency for International Development and the U.S. military for their relief efforts in the region. Bush has designated former Presidents George Bush and Bill Clinton to lead a U.S. fund-raising drive to help the victims. They will take part in a U.S. presidential delegation to Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the Maldives on Feb. 19 to 21, the White House said. The White House said the new request may help cover the cost of debt relief for the hardest hit countries. |
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