Posted on 02/03/2005 2:16:31 PM PST by Jean S
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush will ask Congress next week to boost foreign aid by more than $2 billion, with Israel once again the principal recipient of American military and economic assistance.
The president will request more than $22 billion worldwide, compared with $19.7 billion in the current fiscal year, a senior U.S. official told The Associated Press.
In his State of the Union message Wednesday night, Bush said he would seek $350 million in additional assistance for the Palestinians over two years. The goal is to improve their security forces and give their economy a boost.
The budget request for Israel, which was not announced, will be $2.52 billion in military and economic aid, down about $20 million from this year. For Egypt, the second largest U.S. aid recipient, slightly less than $1.8 billion will be sought, a decline of about $30 million.
Economic aid to Jordan, which is joining Egypt next week in promoting talks between Israel and the Palestinians, will increase slightly to $250 million from this year's $248 million.
Pakistan, the third largest U.S. aid recipient, is due to receive $297 million, a $1 million reduction from this fiscal year.
The budget will be followed in a few weeks by a supplemental request, and both Pakistan and Jordan are likely to be given boosts in assistance, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Israel has agreed to a reduction in U.S. economic assistance to $240 million from $360 million, while U.S. military aid is to be increased.
The Palestinians, meanwhile, had been due to receive $75 million this fiscal year. Bush's initiative would increase that by $200 million.
Another $75 million had been expected to be requested for the next fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. It will now be doubled to $150 million, said Edward Abington, a former U.S. diplomat who is a consultant to the Palestinians.
Last December, meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority received $20 million from the Bush administration to finance its budget.
Otherwise, U.S. assistance has been channeled through private relief organizations, bypassing the Authority when it was controlled by Yasser Arafat out of suspicion U.S. aid was being corruptly diverted.
For the time being, the Bush administration will continue to make contributions directly to the private groups, said Adam Ereli, a State Department spokesman.
Some $50 million of the new money will be used specifically for security at border crossings between the Palestinian-held areas and Israel, diplomatic sources said.
Bolstering Palestinian security could be a key to peace hopes. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is insisting on an end to terror attacks if he is to hold peace talks. Bush also is demanding a good-faith effort to uproot terror groups in Palestinian areas.
The election last month of Mahmoud Abbas, a declared foe of violence against Israel, is viewed by the Bush administration as part of a trend toward democracy. Abbas succeeded the late Yasser Arafat.
Bush in his speech bracketed the Palestinians with Afghanistan, Ukraine and Iraq, as moving toward democracy with elections.
"The beginnings of reform and democracy in the Palestinian territories are showing the power of freedom to break old patterns of violence and failure," he said.
"The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, is within reach, and America will help them achieve that goal," Bush said.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who set off Thursday on a trip to Europe, is due to fly Sunday night to Israel for talks with Sharon and, on the West Bank, with Abbas.
Bush administration officials have concluded that security training needs to be improved, and the Palestinians need more jobs and better facilities for peacemaking with Israel to have a chance.
Egypt on Wednesday summoned the leaders of Israel, the Palestinians and Jordan to a summit meeting next week, and they agreed to attend.
Rice has no plans to attend, but Assistant Secretary of State William Burns, who will be in the region with her, probably will represent the United States at the session at Sharm el-Sheik.
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On the Net:
State Department: http://www.state.gov
AP-ES-02-03-05 1705EST
I thought I saw an article the other day that claimed he was going to start *cutting* spending.
Read later.
I gotta get me soem of that Foreign Aid!
Cut in spending? Whats that?
And an additional $350 mil to Palestinians.
Whats up with all this? Getting scary.
This is from President George "I will send you a budget that holds the growth of discretionary spending below inflation...and stays on track to cut the deficit in half by 2009" Bush? A 10% increase is way over the rate of inflation.
Sure, if you want to guard the Israel/PA border.....
This is a budget item that should be zero.
Twenty billion in foreign aid?? Piece of cake, heck we give $10 billion a year in aid in California to illegal aliens. And nobody complains about that....
GWB has no problem giving away jobs Americans don't want...why not Americans money?
All we are doing is "buying" friendship.
THEY WILL STILL HATE US
That's mighty generous of him.
I do believe ol' George is drinking again.
Pretend it's your money for once, Georgie, and take another look, mmmmmmmmK?
All we are doing is "buying" friendship.
THEY WILL STILL HATE US
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Very true, and that is why I have sent countless emails to the administration encouraging them to drop foreign aid, except to countries that EARN IT. That means alot of things, but these scumbag nations that just spit on us, should be cut off at the knees, immediately, if not sooner.
Let's see
GW wants to raise the bounty on Osama's head from 25-50 million, Increase death benfits for soldiers killed in action from $12,000 to $100,000..and make it retoractive no less. Is he going to get money for the sailors who died on the Cole?? or Khobat towers or the bombing of the amrine barracks in lebanon in '82?? (what happens when we have a war with 20-40K killed or more)
Gave millions to people killed on 9-11.
What happens if we have a biological attack and 10's of thousands die?
George is setting a precendent with all this reckless spending.
Bush to Call for Near-Freeze in Spending: Aide
Is that a laugh or what.
Wonder how many of those countries that get aid somehow the money gets filtered down into terrorist groups?
In a sense we are buying the rpg's that kill our own troops.
No no no, it's all part of that Compassion he talks about.
What he ever fails to say is that its compassion with someone elses money.
Jorge Delano Bush is no Conservative. Never has been, never will be. Big Government RINO. Spend spend spend.
Wait until you see what he hashes out with Vincente before he leaves office.
Remeber all those that suggested Jorge would push the conservative Agenda once he was re-elected with a Majority in the Senate?
Well you won't see them on this thread. LOL
In a sense we are buying the rpg's that kill our own troops.
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This is one potential reality that has always scared me. You could be right on.
Spend spend spend, what's a few billion, spend some more....I am sick and tired of this crap! Friggin Politicians, they need a dose of reality...let em live on my budget!
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