WASHINGTON:  , The United States said Monday ( Mar 31 ) it has dispatched a disaster relief team to Myanmar days after a major earthquake, defending the pace of the deployment following President Donald Trump’s dismantling of America’s main overseas aid agency.
The United States has announced US$ 2 million in aid to help companies on the ground in Myanmar, where the disaster death burden has surpassed 2000.
” A US support group of humanitarian specialists based in the region are traveling to Burma now to identify the person’s most pressing needs, including emergency shelter, food, health needs and access to water”, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters, using Myanmar’s old brand.
The earthquake struck Friday, on the same day that Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was formally dissolving the US Agency for International Development ( USAID), arguing that the “gains were too few and the costs were too high”, after cutting more than 80 percent of its projects.
China, Russia and India have already sent team to Myanmar. Historically the United States, under the direction of USAID, has quickly dispatched rescue teams and comfort around the world following earthquakes and other natural disasters.
Asked if the US reply was slower than usual, Bruce said:” I may reject the notion that this is certainly a result of the USAID breaks and that kind of money. There are many different parts to this dynamic”.