Foreign Aid Cut In U.S.

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32313, 3 June 1970, Page 17

Foreign Aid Cut In U.S.

(N.Z.P.A -Reuter—Copyright)

WASHINGTON, June 1.

One of the lowest foreign aid money bills in history was sent to the House of Representatives today after undergoing heavy pruning in committee by economy-minded members.

The $2300m foreign aid bill approved by the House Approbations Committee was

about $575m below that sought by President Nixon. It covers the financial year begining next July 1. "Federal expenditures must be curtailed, wherever reasonably possible,” a committee report on the bill declared, underlining Administration moves to control budget deficits and inflation.

The committee’s recommendation for only $1644m, mainly for foreign economic and technical assistance, was the lowest amount proposed for the Agency for International Development (A.1.D.) since these programmes were Initiated in 1961. - A.I.D. administers the foreign aid programme. Among major recipients of A.I.D. money in recent years have been South Vietnam, India and Pakistan. Military assistance amounted to s3som, the same as the Administration requested. The committee said that these funds, the bulk of which would go to Near and Far East nations, did not include expenditures for Laos, Thailand or South Vietnam, which were now included in the Defence Department’s budget. Alliance for Progress development loans for Latin America amounted to $225m, $U2.5m under the White House request. Foreign military credit sales, not included in the A.I.D. appropriations, were $272m, the amount requested by the Administration. The foreign aid appropriation for the current financial year was slBl2m. This year’s bill will almost certainly be whittled down further, probably below s2ooom, before it completes its passage through Congress.