Powell to meet UN Afghan envoy as US scrambles to boost aid ($1B)

WASHINGTON (AFP)

US Secretary of State Colin Powell will meet here next week with the UN special envoy to Afghanistan, the State Department said amid a scramble in Washington to boost assistance to President Hamid Karzai's government ahead of elections in 2004.

Powell is to see the envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi, Monday to discuss ongoing reconstruction and stabilization efforts in Afghanistan to which the United States wants to contribute an additional billion dollars in the near future, the department said.

The announcement of the meeting came a day after the senior diplomat overseeing US reconstruction projects in Afghanistan told reporters at the State Department that the need for the additional funds was urgent.

"We need these funds," said William Taylor, who Powell appointed to the position last month. "We don't have a lot of time. The election is next June. ---

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