US administration has declared Sunday AIDS a national and global security threat, saying it has the potential to destabilize governments.
President Clinton's advisers in the National Security Council will lead a review of US policy to fight AIDS and look at the disease's effect on international stability, said CNN.
Jim Kennedy, the White House Deputy Spokesman, said the administration now believes AIDS is "more than a legitimate ongoing health threat, but also has the potential to destabilize governments such as African or Asian nations, which makes it an international security issue.
Quoting a report by The Washington Post, Reuters said the designation means that for the first time, the National Security Council is involved in fighting an infectious disease."
According to CNN, the move will elevate AIDS research and work on the federal level to include the council and the Department of Defense.
The council is directing an urgent review of the government's efforts to combat the global AIDS epidemic, which is particularly disastrous in southern Africa.
The Washington Post said those efforts have led to a doubling of the budget request, to $254 million, to combat AIDS overseas, said Reuters Monday - (Several Sources)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
