World spurns US appeal for $30bn to rebuild Iraq

[papau]

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/politics/story.jsp?story=456628

World spurns US appeal for $30bn to rebuild Iraq
By Stephen Castle in Brussels24 October 2003

Kofi Annan, the UN secretary general, appealed yesterday at the donor conference for Iraq for nations to give generously to tackle the disease, homelessness and malnutrition afflicting the country.

At the start of the fund-raising conference in Madrid its Spanish hosts lowered expectations by setting a $6bn (£3.5bn) target for the gathering, which is being held against the backdrop of divisions over the US-led occupation. Pledges are certain to fall short of the $30bn sought by Washington, with Europe expected to stump up about €700m (£487m) from EU and national coffers for 2004. <snip>

President George Bush plans to set aside $20bn for Iraqi reconstruction over 18 months, although the US Senate voted to convert $10bn of the package into loans to be repaid with Iraq's oil revenues. Yesterday Washington made it clear that its aid will be paid bilaterally and not through an international trust fund administered by the UN, the World Bank and a committee of Iraqis.

With agreement having been reached on a new UN resolution, the climate of the conference is better than many expected. Japan has pledged $1.5bn for 2004, South Korea has agreed to pay $200m, and Canada has offered $150m. The World Bank has said it will lend Iraq $3bn to $5bn over the next five years. Spain has pledged a total of €300m from 2003-07, although that sum includes loans, and Britain has promised £260m in 2005-05.

<snip>

[gWbush is Mabus]

1. this is a joke

200m 300m...hell * will raise that much for the 2004 election

[Spazito]

2. LOL! True, maybe he should donate his election funds to the cause!

While he is at it, he and Cheney should get their Halliburton buddies to donate their time and "effort" in Iraq. Hmmmmm, wonder why they aren't doing that? They want every other nation to cough up but aren't asking their CLOSEST friends.

[jokerman93]

4. No He Can't Do That

He needs all his campaign money to privatize the neocon dirty tricks agenda for 2004, not to mention funding a spectacular fear-inducing event sequel in time for the election!

Another war? A dirty bomb? How about "finding" those unexplained vanishing WMD in Iraq?

Cynical? Naaaaaaa!

[Spazito]

6. LOL! The one thing Bush has done is unite us all in cynicism!

*

[WildClarySage]

14. see?

he really *is* a uniter!

*barfs*

[Barrett808]

7. Yes, I fully expect the looted Iraqi nuclear materials to turn up

In a spectacular pre-election dirty-bomb event.

[0007]

10. Hey! the Carlyle boys could probably come up

with five mill, 'eh?

This is a shake down if I ever saw one!!

[hatrack]

3. No surprises here

"You break it, you buy it" holds true, even in Madrid, it seems.

[Beetwasher]

5. Embarrasingly Pathetic

n/t

[Zech Marquis]

8. I'm surprised Canada even lifted a finger

especially after how that slugball ambassador * sent there has treated them. (id lock * up with Pamela Anderson in Gitmo, but he wouldn't know what to do with her :evilgrin: )

[tom_paine]

9. As well they should spurn it

Would you have Caeser solicitng funds to rebuild Gaul?

Hitler soliciting funds for the recosntruction of Poland?

Puh-lleze. It's not as if the world is as stupid as the Imperial Subjects of Amerika.

[gratuitous]

11. Well now there's a shocker!

And I ain't talkin' Wichita State! Imagine, all the civilized countries of the world declining to lend a veneer of legitimacy to Lil George's Excellent Invasion by giving him money to help pull his tit out of the wringer. I can't fathom why they wouldn't all just be clamoring to throw a big old wad of money down that sewer hole. Don't they know our president is an MBA? And if you can't trust an MBA to manage billions of donated dollars, who can you trust???

[ozone_man]

12. The concept of having other countries pay

for our destruction of Iraq is most illogical, especially after the U.S. decided to ignore the U.N.

As Hatrack says, we broke it, we pay for it.

[Laughing Mirror]

13. Why don't they ask Bill Gates?

I hear he has about $63 billion. Surely, he wouldn't mind parting with 30 billion of it for such a good cause.