WASHINGTON. The Trump administration will allocate an additional $250 million to the Philippines to support tuberculosis prevention, maternal health, and responses to emerging diseases, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Thursday.
The funding comes after $63 million was pledged during U.S. President Donald Trump’s meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House in July. Rubio said the assistance reflects Trump’s new foreign aid model following the closure of USAID and other traditional aid channels.
The new support underscores “the comprehensive bond between the United States and the Philippines” and highlights “the efficient, time-limited, and narrowly targeted approach of this new era of America First foreign assistance,” Rubio stated.
The Philippine embassy in Washington welcomed the announcement, saying it appreciates the aid but declined to issue further comments.
The Trump administration has been moving to scale back foreign assistance as part of its “America First” policy, withholding billions in aid previously approved by Congress. Despite this, lawmakers, largely Republicans, have budgeted billions in foreign aid, including $11 billion that must be spent before a September 30 deadline.
After a legal challenge, the administration confirmed it intends to release $6.5 billion of the funds. Its effort to block another $4 billion in allocations is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Edgardo Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
- EDGARDO HERNAL
- EDGARDO HERNAL
- EDGARDO HERNAL
- EDGARDO HERNAL
