U.S. Congress clears $79b war package

The U.S. Congress yesterday sent President George W. Bush a $79 billion package to pay for conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, reward allies such as Turkey, bolster anti-terrorism and help struggling airlines.

The huge bill, which Congress took up at the start of the war in Iraq and pushed through in just three weeks, gives Bush all the money he sought for the war, but curbs the free rein he wanted over most of the funds.

The House of Representatives passed the measure by a voice vote in a rare weekend session. The Senate agreed late on Friday to approve the measure.

Meanwhile the Group of Seven industrial nations meeting in Washington yesterday called for multilateral involvement in the rebuilding of Iraq and backed a fresh United Nations resolution on the effort.

"We recognise the need for a multilateral effort to help Iraq. We support a further UN Security Council resolution," a statement from finance leaders of the G7 - the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Canada, Italy and Japan - said in a statement issued after a gathering.

The statement said the International Monetary Fund and World Bank "should play their normal role in rebuilding and developing Iraq." It said the global lenders should recognise the need for the Iraqi people to decide their own future.

In St Petersburg, countries opposed to the U.S.-led campaign called yesterday for a world order focusing on international law and the United Nations.

Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin hosted German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac for negotiations on how to uphold the role of the United Nations in rebuilding Iraq and on repairing damage to ties with Washington.

The three leaders gave no ground in their appeals to place the United Nations at the centre of reconstruction efforts - dismissed by U.S. officials as misplaced. But their tone was more restrained.

Chirac, addressing a conference on international law, said the campaign had proved the need for consultation to ensure force was only used as a last resort.

Schroeder said the United Nations remained "the sole world body based on universal values and legal principles".