The U.S. and its allies have funded a host of Syrian opposition councils that are more interested in seeking Western aid than serving the Syrian people.
How Western Aid Bungled Syria’s Opposition & Paved the Way for ISIS
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Foreign Aid
Haiti’s Chief Foreign Import: Meddling
As Haiti faces yet another political crisis, it’s time to recognize the role the international community has played in creating it.
A Precarious Victory in El Salvador
Washington is threatening to withhold development aid unless El Salvador adopts economic policies that Salvadorans just voted against.
U.S. Foreign Assistance: More Guns than Butter
Aid to foreign militaries is quickly eclipsing development assistance in the U.S. foreign aid budget.
Foreign Aid Is Afghanistan’s Resource Curse
Afghanistan, which manages to generate only about $2 billion per year of its own revenues and depends on international donors for the rest of its budget, suffers from a kind of resource curse. With plenty of cash and no accountability to citizens—as well as minimal oversight by donors—Afghan officials are free to rip off donor resources and ignore or extort their fellow citizens with relative impunity.
Disaster Times Two in Pakistan
After last year’s failures, and with monsoon season a fairly predictable occurrence, why are Pakistan and the international community again unprepared for the flooding that has been looming for months? So far, U.S. bilateral assistance has been limited to a modest $19 million emergency relief package from USAID. In a political climate where Mitt Romney and other Republican candidates have suggested cutting off all aid to Pakistan, Washington appears reluctant to offer more help.
Obama to Aid Uzbek Dictatorship
The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, in a move initiated by the Obama administration, has voted to waive Bush-era human rights restrictions on military aid to the Islam Karimov dictatorship in Uzbekistan, one of the most brutal and repressive regimes on the planet. The lifting of the restrictions, now part of the Foreign Operations bill, is before the full Senate and appears to have bipartisan support. The Obama administration has indicated that it intends to provide taxpayer-funded military assistance to Uzbekistan once the legislation passes both houses of Congress.
Timor: Where Has All the Aid Gone?
When Indonesia withdrew from Timor-Leste (TL) in 1999, governments all over the world expressed their sympathy for the Timorese. Donor governments promised to assist TL to build a viable state, with lasting peace and stability. Early on, the United States also committed to help TL move toward a democratic society. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently reiterated this commitment in her meeting with TL’s Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao.
After 11 years, the rhetoric is still the same. But the reality on the ground has not changed much.
Washington Still Refuses to Learn an Obvious Lesson
Back in 2004, three years into the hunt for Osama bin Laden, the 9/11 Commission report made its debut to the gushing admiration of the Washington press corps. The report was everything that the mainstream media adores: bipartisan, devoid of divisive finger-pointing, full of conventional wisdom.
Haiti’s Reconstruction: Who Benefits?
Georges Marie is a proud and angry Haitian lawyer who lost her husband in the earthquake. As she mourned, the humanitarian industry exploded. She watched with concern as Port au Prince’s narrow streets became clogged with white Land Rovers, each stamped with an aid agency logo on the driver’s door. It still rankles her when the humanitarians dine and dance in a four-star restaurant overlooking the Place Boyer, a public square now strung with tarps, home to some of the million-plus people still displaced from the 2010 earthquake.