U.S. Feeds the World, While Russia and China Criticize Our Debt
By Ellen Ratner
Published August 09, 2011
| FoxNews.com
It is no secret to readers of Fox News.com Opinion that I am very involved in South Sudan and other parts of Africa. It is very scary now as the rainy season though out parts of Africa has not produced what is needed in order to grow crops. Somalia is the first county to have direct effects of the drought with almost 30,0000 children under five years old already dead and 640,000 malnourished. People are walking days and days to get to refugee camps.
Although some aid has been prevented from reaching the most hungry by the lack political situation and gang warfare in Somalia many people could get aid if only there was enough money. Sadly, two large countries are not bucking up with money, China and Russia. The United States which is the largest donor has given almost 73 million dollars. President Obama has pledged $105 million dollars for this year. It is a bipartisan effort with Vice President Biden going to Kenya and the refugee camps accompanied by former Republican Senator and physician Bill Frist. They are not just visiting, they have also met with Kenyan President Kibaki.
I travel a lot and everywhere I go China has established a presence there. They are drilling for oil in Sudan, they are putting up housing and agriculture projects in Grenada.
They have signs up all over the world touting the work they are doing, where and when it suits their political and investment needs.
But, where are they when it comes to hunger that does not support their interests?
Although it did not show up on the Financial Tracking Series, the Chinese Embassy in New York says they have given $19.5 million dollars to aid agencies that deliver food to Somalia. Even if their press is accurate, that is a paltry sum compared to the amount of people they have and the amount of sheer dollars they put into development in Africa that serves their own long term interests.
Russia is even worse than China although they do not have the breath of development projects in Africa that China has. They do give $33 million to the World Food Program with three million of that going to Somalia. They also give two million to the UN Central Emergency Relief Program (CERF). Being generous and assuming that money all goes to Somalia that puts a grand total of five million from Russia.
With the United Kingdom putting in 63 million and Saudi Arabia putting in 50 million, China and Russia look pretty stingy.
They need pressure from the rest of the world to buck up and help out. The USA need not be the most generous country, time for the these almost Super-powers to contribute.
In the last two weeks America has gotten close to a default on our credit. Our country has seen our federal debt downgraded by Standard & Poor’s and witnessed the worst day for the stock market since the 2008 financial crisis. It has also faced withering criticism from the Chinese and Russians for this sorry state of affairs.
Yet, we are still feeding the world, sending more than $100 million to Africa to make sure it happen.
What say you to all of this, China and Russia? I say… show me YOUR money.
Ellen Ratner is a Fox News contributor and the Washington Bureau chief for Talk Radio News Service.
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