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U.S. Department of State Office of the Spokesman Press Statement

Press Statement by James P. Rubin, Spokesman
March 15, 1999

U.S. Contributes $71.6 Million To ICRC

The United States is pleased to announce a contribution of $71.6 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This initial FY-99 contribution provides $9.8 million for headquarters operations, and $61.8 million in response to ICRC’s emergency appeals for field operations. The United States is the largest single contributor to the ICRC.

Julia V. Taft, Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration, announced the contribution this morning during a meeting with ICRC President Cornelio Sommaruga. President Sommaruga is in Washington this week for meetings with senior Administration officials at the State Department and Defense Department, with Members of Congress, World Bank executives, and with the American Red Cross.

The Geneva-based organization provides humanitarian assistance throughout the world, particularly in areas of armed conflict. ICRC currently is operating in over 60 locations around the world, including Kosovo, Congo, Liberia, Afghanistan, and the Middle East. The International Committee of the Red Cross often is the only international organization allowed to move freely within occupied territories, to cross combatant lines, to access prisons or detention centers, and to act as an intermediary in hostage situations or POW exchanges. The United States has the highest regard for the difficult and often dangerous work of the ICRC in providing assistance and protection to victims of conflict.

The ICRC is celebrating this year the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Geneva Conventions which address the protection and treatment of civilians, wounded combatants, and prisoners in armed conflict.

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