Author: Unknown
Published on: 31/01/2025 | 00:00:00
AI Summary:
United States President Donald Trump announced a temporary freeze on almost all foreign assistance. “President Trump stated clearly that the United States is no longer going to blindly dole out money with no return for the American people,” a State Department spokesperson says. The decision by the world’s single largest donor has sent shockwaves across the world. In 2023, Washington disbursed $72bn in foreign aid across nearly 180 countries. Over the next three months, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will review and take a call on whether to continue, modify, or terminate programs. Emergency food programmes, like the ones used to help people suffering from a widening famine in war-torn Sudan, are exempt. Yemen and Afghanistan received $359.9m and $332m respectively. The aid is disbursed through various federal departments such as the Pentagon and agencies such as USAID. Health receives the second highest funding at $16bn while humanitarian aid stands at 15.6bn. PEPFAR is believed to have saved 25 million lives in at least 50 countries. AmfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, slammed the freeze. The Aurum Institute said it was “obliged” to stop activities on US-funded projects. U.S. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the US to consider additional exemptions. At least 56 senior officials in USAID were put on leave after scrambling to help aid organisations deal with the funding freeze, seek waivers to secure clean water and continue monitoring bird flu. Florida Republican Brian Mast said the freeze was necessary to ensure that “appropriations are not duplicated, are effective, and are consistent with President Trump’s foreign policy” How US foreign aid has changed over the years has changed. In 2023, the Council on Foreign Relations said that the US has used foreign aid ia. The US provided $13bn for the economic recovery of Western European nations.
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