US hopes tsunami aid will help anti-terror drive

JAKARTA - US Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Tuesday he hoped American aid for Asia's tsunami victims would strengthen US and regional security by removing any discontent that could fuel terrorism.

Powell, touring three countries ravaged by the Boxing Day disaster in which about 150,000 people were killed, said Washington had sent money, ships, helicopters and aircraft for humanitarian reasons.

But there were US and regional security interests in providing aid to help countries recover from such disasters, he told a joint news conference with Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda in Jakarta.

"We hope that through these efforts people will see that the United States is committed to helping those who are in poverty, to those who are not able to educate their children, to those who are looking for jobs and need a country that is based on law and order," said Powell.

"We believe it is in the best interest of those countries and it's in our best interest and it dries up those pools of dissatisfaction which might give rise to terrorist activity," he said.

"Under such circumstances we think it's less likely that the terrorists will find fertile ground. That supports not only our national security interests, but the national security interests of the countries involved."

Indonesia has been hit by a series of bomb attacks blamed on Jemaah Islamiah, a southeast Asian network linked to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda. The attacks include the 2002 Bali bombings in which 202 people were killed.

Powell was on the second day of a tour through Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, three of the countries hardest hit by the killer waves triggered by an undersea earthquake off the coast of Indonesia.

The White House hopes President Bush's decision to send his brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and Powell to the region will demonstrate American concern for the tsunami victims.

The Bush administration, criticised in some quarters for what was seen as a slow and stingy initial response to the disaster, has increased its aid pledge from US$15 million ($21m) to US$350 million ($500m) and has stationed an aircraft carrier off Indonesia so helicopters can ferry food and water to survivors.

At every stop, including visits to Bangkok and Phuket - one of Asia's leading tourist island resorts where the tsunami killed 262 people - Powell has said the United States was firmly committed to helping countries recover.

On his way to Phuket, he flew past buildings reduced to their concrete foundations.

At Bangkok airport, Powell got a glimpse of the huge task relief workers face, walking past heaped crates of bottled water, piles of empty coffins and unmarked boxes filled with donated clothes.

On Wednesday, Powell plans to visit the Indonesian province of Aceh, where the tsunami claimed around two-thirds of its victims, before returning to Jakarta for an international summit on aid for the disaster-hit countries.

- REUTERS