US to provide new aid for displaced people in Myanmar

The US government on Monday announced provision of 525 million US dollars in new aid to address the dire humanitarian situation faced by displaced communities in Myanmar's Rakhine and Kachin states, as well as its southeast region, said a press release of the US Embassy in Yangon. The southeast region covers southern Shan, Karen, Kayah and Mon states. The announcement came after respective visits to these areas by a joint diplomatic mission from the United States, Switzerland and the United Kingdom during October and November to witness the political and humanitarian situation there. "This assistance responds to ongoing humanitarian emergencies in Rakhine and Kachin and long-standing displacement in the Southeast region," the release said. The US government vowed to work closely with the Myanmar government and local communities to continue to meet life-saving needs and achieve lasting solutions for the country's displace people, it added. According to an earlier press release of the embassy, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has extended 7.28 million dollars in emergency aid to victims of violence in Rakhine State as of January this year since June 2012. Inter-communal conflict in Rakhine State flared up in June 2012 and surged again in October of the year, displacing an estimated 115,000 people and resulting in the loss of lives, housing, and others.