The U.S. Oversight and Government Reform Committee is investigating the disappearance of $US 4 BLN in cash weighing a total of more than 360 tons that was sent as financial aid to Iraq.
Paul Bremer, the former U.S. occupation chief, responsible for the financial aid operation, defended his actions following the U.S. invasion of Iraq. He said he did the best he could to restore the Iraqi economy. The money originally came from Iraqi oil exports, surplus dollars from the UN-run Oil-for-Food program, and frozen assets belonging to the Saddam Hussein regime. Henry Waxman, Democratic Chairman of Committee, said it was the largest cash shipment ever made by the Federal Reserve. “The numbers are so large that it doesn’t seem possible that they’re true. Who in their right mind would send 360 tonnes of cash into a war zone? But that’s exactly what our government did,” he said.