US funding hold will hurt UN effort to help Palestinian refugees -Russia's Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a UN news conference on Friday that the US decision to withhold funds for a UN agency that assists Palestinians would seriously undermine efforts to meet the needs of refugees.
"This decision ... undermines in a serious way the efforts to satisfy the needs of Palestinian refugees in the region," Lavrov said through a translator. "We'll consult all stakeholders and we'll see what we can do."
The United States said this week it had decided to pay the UN Relief and Works Agency $60 million but was putting a hold on another $65 million it had been expected to offer. The US State Department also said it would not provide an additional $45 million in food aid it had pledged for Palestinians.
