UAE aid to Palestine has surpassed pledges

Occupied Jerusalem: Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said the UAE's aid to Palestine has surpassed the pledges it had announced during the 2007 donors' conference in Paris.

Fayyad's comments came in a statement commenting on a recent report by Reuters on Arab countries' aid to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

"The report gives a totally wrong impression. The UAE's total aid to the Palestinian National Authority has reached $310 million (Dh1.13 billion), which is bigger than the $300 million which it had pledged during the donors' conference in Paris in 2007," Fayyad said.

"The said funds were committed not only to the PNA's budget, but also to development projects and relief aid over three years (2008-2010)," he added.

Keen interest

"This reflects the UAE's keen interest, not only in meeting its financial pledges to PNA, but also in prioritising and paying them according to the challenges PNA and the Palestinian people are facing."

"This generous support from the UAE, under the leadership of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is not something new. The UAE has been offering unlimited support to Palestinians," he said.

In 2007, the UAE paid a total of $110 million in funds to support the PNA's budget. The UAE also paid all the pledges it had announced since the Arab Summit in Beirut in 2002, according to Fayyad.

The Palestinian prime minister described PNA's financial situation as "very difficult", but expressed hopes that all Arab countries would provide the support needed to overcome the current crisis.

On August 19, Reuters reported that Arab states have cut financial aid to the PNA so far this year, according to PNA figures seen by Reuters, and the UN has warned of a looming Palestinian cash crisis.

The report, that was rebuked by Fayyad, mentioned that the UAE which contributed $173.9 million in 2009, has yet to pay for 2010.