Norwegian NGO suspends demining in 13 countries after US aid freeze

A Norwegian aid group has suspended mine clearing activities in 13 countries following the freezing of US foreign aid, one of its directors told AFP on Monday.

Last year, Norwegian People's Aid received $41 million from US authorities to support its demining activities around the world.

On Friday, "we were told that we had to put on hold all activities that had received US support while the US authorities reviewed their aid," Aksel Steen-Nilsen, Director of Humanitarian Mine Action and Disarmament at the NGO, told AFP.

According to an internal memo, newly appointed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week ordered that US foreign aid, with the exception of that provided to Egypt and Israel, should be frozen while a review was carried out.

The freeze, which stems from a 90-day order signed by US President Donald Trump, will affect Norwegian People's Aid's activities in 13 countries in southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

"This is particularly bad news for countries like Iraq and Laos," Steen-Nilsen said.

"We hope that the US administration will carry out its review as soon as possible so that we can quickly resume our life-saving work," he added.

In the meantime, the NGO, which is active in some 20 countries, is considering reallocating its resources or looking for new donors.

But Steen-Nilsen stressed that "this takes time."