Iraq crisis will not divert aid, says US

The US ambassador to Ethiopia has vowed that the crisis in Iraq will not disrupt her country's aid package to the drought-stricken Horn of Africa country. Ambassador Aurelia Brazeal declared that reconstruction efforts in Iraq would have no negative impact on development and humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia. The US so far has pledged over 755,000 mt of food – valued at more than US $342 million - to Ethiopia where some 12.6 million people are facing starvation. In a statement, the embassy in Addis Ababa added that it was not expecting delays in food shipments to Ethiopia because of the situation in Iraq. It also said that an additional 43,000 mt of food - valued at US$ 25.5 million - were being shipped in as part of latest appeal by the government of Ethiopia. The US is also providing US $45 million for its ongoing development programmes in the country. Under the current emergency, the US has contributed 34 percent of the total food requirements, followed by the EU with 22 percent, and UK at 6 percent.