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Malaysian PM Slams U.S. Aid Policy Ahead of Visit
April 11, 2002 12:10 pm EST
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, due to pay a rare visit to the White House next month, said on Thursday the United States had become "ugly" and criticized its aid policy.
"At one time the United States was the most popular country in the world because of the Peace Corps. Now there is no Peace Corps and no aid except when tied to the fulfillment of the policies of the donor," Mahathir told a gathering of U.S. and Asian business and government leaders.
The Peace Corps is a U.S. agency that sends volunteers to help communities outside the country.
Mahathir said the slightest breach of the donor's conditions would result in sanctions and other punitive measures against the recipient, leading to further impoverishment.
"America has become ugly and American embassies everywhere must be built behind high walls," the prime minister added.
President Bush has invited Mahathir, Asia's longest-serving elected leader, to visit Washington on May 12-14.
The visit is seen as a major step forward in bilateral ties and reflects Washington's regard for the 76-year-old as a moderate Muslim leader.
Relations between Malaysia and the United States, its biggest trading partner and foreign investor, soured over the 1998 imprisonment of Mahathir's former deputy Anwar Ibrahim, whom Washington regards as a political prisoner.
But ties improved after Mahathir took a tough line on Islamic militants after the September 11 attacks on U.S. cities.
Malaysia's crackdown has seen police arrest about 50 suspected Muslim militants in the last 11 months.
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