There are many wealthy countries around the world, and they all should contribute to the aid efforts. We will do our part – we already have people there and will have more people there. We will help as much as we can, but it is not easy to work in this place due to the military junta that does not like us.
On Tuesday, a former USAID official told the BBC that the shutdown of the agency led by Elon Musk’s advisor to Trump meant that the White House could not send rescue teams from the US to save lives immediately after the earthquake on March 28.
The disaster has already taken the lives of over 3,000 people. Usually, the US can deploy up to 200 rescue workers and sniffer dogs along with specialized equipment during such earthquakes, and is often the largest and best-equipped foreign response team on the ground.
Last week, the State Department said that a team of three US advisors based in the region would be sent to the disaster zone.
Speaking to reporters at a NATO meeting in Brussels, Rubio blamed the military regime in Myanmar for the lack of access, even though the State Department had previously stated that the country had made a formal request for assistance.
Former USAID officials say that their work is seen as non-political, and they have previously been able to access countries that are politically hostile.
Rubio dismissed the accounts of humanitarian aid experts who said that the inability to deploy a large US rescue team was due to the cuts in USAID funding.
He stated that NGOs make millions and hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide, and then receive US taxpayer money, and this is no longer going to happen.
Rubio added that they are prepared to help and work with governments and appropriate NGOs on the ground that are delivering assistance. They will be there and helpful, but other rich countries should also contribute and help.
When the news of the Myanmar earthquake emerged, the White House reportedly tried to deploy a Disaster Assistance Response Team from the US, but was unable to do so because of the cuts from the Trump administration.
These cuts had cancelled logistics contracts and fired officials who oversaw such deployments, according to former officials.
The cuts to USAID had been led by Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency after President Trump targeted foreign assistance on his first day in office, calling it an “industry” that was in many cases “antithetical to American values”.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy9vq1qx0jqo
