CNN
—
As civil war-torn Myanmar struggles to recover from a devastating earthquake, the United States is facing criticism that it has abandoned the country in its hour of need – and is ceding global leadership on disaster response to its rivals.
The 7.7-magnitude quake, which struck on March 28 and killed thousands, is the first major natural disaster since the Trump administration canceled billions of dollars in lifesaving programs under its drive to dismantle the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the main US humanitarian aid agency.
USAID used to administer most of America’s foreign aid – 61% of the $71 billion total budget in 2023. But since…
