Getting aid to millions of tsunami victims is a race against time and nations must immediately come forward with the aid they've promised, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said yesterday at an emergency summit amid warnings that the 150,000 death toll may double because of disease.
World leaders have gathered in Indonesia, hardest hit by the Dec. 26 disaster, to figure out the best way to speed aid to victims. While nearly US$4 billion has been pledged worldwide, the UN has warned some of the promises might not be honored as in previous disasters.
PHOTO: CNA
Annan urged nations to channel US$1.7 billion of the funds to the United Nations for relief, including US$977 million for emergency aid.
"Whole communities have disappeared," Annan said, calling for the establishment of a tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean. "Millions in Asia, Africa, and even in far away countries, are suffering unimaginable trauma and psychological wounds that will take a long time to heal. Families have been torn apart.
"The disaster was so brutal, so quick, and so far-reaching, that we are still struggling to comprehend it," Annan added, stressing the need for donor "pledges to be converted into cash quickly ... It is a race against time."
The UN chief said the number killed across Asia and Africa would likely exceed 150,000, but the exact figure would never be known. The World Health Organization warned the toll could double if aid doesn't reach survivors soon.
"As many as 150,000 people are at extreme risk if a major disease outbreak in the affected areas occurs," said WHO Director-General Dr. Lee Jong-wook.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono described the calamity as "the most destructive natural disaster in living memory."
"Our response to this unprecedented catastrophe must be equally unprecedented," he said at the one-day summit, attended by leaders including Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao (
A tsunami warning system -- like the one already in place in the Pacific -- should be established in the Indian Ocean as quickly as possible, he said: "Prevention and early warning systems must become a priority."
Japan planned to offer technical expertise to set up the warning system. The country has one of the world's most advanced networks of fiber-optic sensors, which can warn of deadly tsunami within two minutes of a quake.
"No longer must we leave ourselves so vulnerable and so exposed," Thai Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathaim said. "It is well-proven that 10 minutes advance warning can save hundreds of lives."
An early draft of the closing declaration of yesterday's meeting called for the warning system to be set up and for the UN to take the lead in coordinating the relief effort.
Powell told delegates the US would let the UN coordinate relief work. Soon after the tsunami struck, Washington said it and a few other countries would lead the aid effort.
Pledges of aid rushed in on the eve of yesterday's conference.
Australia raised its total aid pledge to US$810 million, the largest government contribution, topping Germany's US$660 million, followed by Japan and the United States.
The US was the first to raise the aid race stakes last week by pledging US$350 million. It's now fourth on the donor list and has sent in an aircraft carrier group and thousands of troops. Japan promised US$500 million last week.
On the sidelines of the meeting, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the European Union will immediately donate US$132 million for tsunami relief and look at setting up a US$1.32 billion loan for affected nations.
However that amount still needed to be approved by EU governments and the European Parliament, which could happen as soon as early next week, officials said.
Also see stories:
Minister upset over summit ban
ONE LAST TALK: While Xi said that Taiwan was a ‘red line,’ Biden, in what is likely his last meeting with Xi as president, called for an end to China’s military activity around Taiwan China’s military intimidation and economic coercion against Taiwan are the main causes of tensions that are destabilizing peace in the Taiwan Strait, Taipei said yesterday while thanking US President Joe Biden for expressing Washington’s firm stance of maintaining peace and stability in the region. Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) met on Saturday for their third meeting and their first talks in seven months on the sidelines of the APEC forum in Lima, Peru. It was likely Biden’s last meeting as president with Xi. During their conversation, Biden reiterated the US’ opposition to any unilateral change to the “status quo” from either
Taiwan would participate in the 2026 APEC summit to be hosted by China after Beijing promised it would ensure the personal safety of attendees, Taiwanese national security sources said yesterday. The APEC Leaders’ Machu Picchu Declaration announced yesterday said that China would host the APEC summit in 2026. Beijing proposed hosting the summit shortly before this year’s gathering began on Friday, a national security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Many APEC members expressed concerns about China hosting the event and said that prior communication over the decision was insufficient, the official said. Taiwan brought up concerns about legal “guidelines” China announced in
SUPPORT: Arms sales to NATO Plus countries such as Japan, South Korea and Israel only have to be approved by the US Congress if they exceed US$25m The US should amend a law to add Taiwan to the list of “NATO Plus” allies and streamline future arms sales, a US commission said on Tuesday in its annual report to the US Congress. The recommendation was made in the annual report by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), which contained chapters on US-China economic and trade ties, security relations, and Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the chapter on Taiwan, the commission urged the US Congress to “amend the Arms Export Control Act of 1976 to include Taiwan on the list of ‘NATO Plus’ recipients,” referring to
MEET AND GREET: The White House, which called the interaction ‘just a handshake,’ did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether Biden planned to visit Taiwan’s envoy to the APEC summit, Lin Hsin-i (林信義), on Friday invited US President Joe Biden to visit Taiwan. During the APEC Leaders’ Informal Dialogue, Lin, who represented President William Lai (賴清德) at the summit, spoke with Biden and expressed gratitude to the outgoing US president for his contribution to improving bilateral ties between Taipei and Washington over the past four years, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Lin and Biden exchanged views during the conversation, with Lin extending an invitation to Biden to visit Taiwan, it said. Biden is to step down in January next year, when US president-elect Donald Trump is
RSS