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Airbornelawyer
09-05-2007, 14:40
U.S. Foreign Aid to East and South Asia: Selected Recipients
August 22, 2007 Congressional Research Service report to Congress

41 pages

Available here: http://opencrs.com/document/RL31362/

Summary:
This report analyzes annual budget justifications and legislation for foreign operations and discusses U.S. foreign aid trends, programs, and restrictions in 16 East Asian and South Asian countries. This report does not cover aid to Pacific Island nations, North Korea, and Afghanistan. Since the war on terrorism began in 2001 and the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) and Global HIV/AIDS Initiative (GHAI) were launched in 2004, the United States has increased foreign aid spending dramatically in some regions. The United States has raised military, economic, and development assistance primarily for counterterrorism objectives in the East Asia-Pacific (EAP) and South Asia regions, with Pakistan, India, the Philippines, and Indonesia receiving the bulk of the increases. Average annual funding for the EAP region (excluding North Korea) during 2002-2006 was $494 million compared to $368 million in 2001. Annual foreign aid spending for South Asia (excluding Afghanistan) during 2002-2006 averaged $953 million compared to $201 million in 2001. The new Strategic Framework for U.S. Foreign Assistance groups foreign aid objectives into five categories as part of the Bush Administration's overarching goal of transformational diplomacy: peace and security; governing justly and democratically; investing in people; economic growth; and humanitarian assistance. Counterterrorism efforts, democracy building, and the MCA are major, complimentary components of the Administration's foreign aid policy, which promotes good governance as a crucial condition for both development and global security. The United States has restricted foreign assistance to many countries in East and South Asia in order to encourage democracy. Since 2003, President Bush has annually exercised the waiver authority on coup-related sanctions against Pakistan. In 2005, the United States government resumed full military assistance to Indonesia, based upon the satisfaction of legislative conditions and national security grounds. In response to the September 2006 military coup in Thailand, the Bush Administration suspended military and peacekeeping assistance pursuant to Section 508 of the Foreign Operations Appropriations Act. The Administration's FY2008 foreign operations budget request reduces assistance to some Asian countries. The Senate report on H.R. 2764, the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act for 2008, recommends additional FMF for the Philippines and Economic Support Funds (ESF) for Nepal as well as increased funding for democracy and human rights programs in Burma, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan (S.Rept. 110-128). H.R. 2764 as passed by the House recommends more ESF for Burma, East Timor, and Tibet and greater Development Assistance to India than the amounts provided by the Administration's request, and opposes military assistance to Thailand (H.Rept. 110197). This report will be updated periodically.