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Week Ending July 29, 2005

Presidential Determination 2005-30 Drawdown of Commodities and Services from the Department of Defense to Support African Union Peacekeeping in Darfur, Sudan.

   Under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and citing that the action is vital to the US national interests, the President is authorizing a drawdown of $6 million worth of excess Defense Department goods and services to aid the transportation of African Union forces from throughout that continent to Darfur.

   Drawdowns have become a popular source of materiel for President Bush’s foreign policy actions. So far in calendar 2005 he has ordered a drawdown of over $250 million in Dept of Defense goods, training and services to Afghanistan and $10 million to the Philippines.

   Residents of Darfur, Sudan have been living under murderous conditions since 2001 from attacks by a militia, the Janjaweed, that is allegedly backed by the Sudan Government in Khartoum. The US Congress has deemed the Janjaweed actions as genocide. On top of that a north-south civil war has been going on for decades but is showing signs of compromise.

   The African Union is something of an African UN and has provided about 2300 troops in the Darfur region with plans to send more. Medical aid and other humanitarian aid has been provided by France and some financial aid has been provided by the US.

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