US announces foreign spending plan in $1.2 trillion package

The State Department appropriations bill would continue a ban on US funding for UNRWA, the main UN agency for Palestinians, for at least one year.

It also eliminates funding for the UN Commission of Inquiry against Israel and fully funds the US's $3.3 billion annual security commitment to Israel.

Capitol, the US Congress Building. Photo: Reuters

President Joe Biden's administration said in January that it was halting new funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) after Israel accused 12 of the agency's 13,000 staff in Gaza of participating in Hamas' October 7 massacre of Israeli territory.

However, activists are calling on Washington to reinstate aid to the Palestinian aid agency to prevent famine in Gaza. Senator Chris Van Hollen has argued that UNRWA remains essential to saving lives, saying the decision is “unconscionable” given the humanitarian disaster in Gaza.

“UNRWA is the primary means of delivering much-needed aid in Gaza – so denying funding to UNRWA is tantamount to denying food to starving people and restricting medical supplies to wounded civilians,” he said in a statement.

The State Department budget bill also includes a one-year reauthorization of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). PEPFAR began in 2003 under President George W. Bush and has enjoyed bipartisan support until recently.

But this year, abortion rights opponents have taken issue with the program. Supporters say PEPFAR does not fund or provide abortion services, and no PEPFAR money is used to fund abortion services.

The US State Department says more than $100 billion has been spent on the global HIV/AIDS response through the program, saving 25 million lives.

Prior to the above foreign policy appropriations bill, the US Defense Appropriations Bill included a record $886 billion in annual military spending, approved in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which was passed last year.

Huy Hoang (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/quoc-hoi-my-cong-bo-ke-hoach-chi-tieu-doi-ngoai-trong-goi-ngan-sach-12-nghin-ty-usd-post288759.html