Katrina: Australian government gives $10 million to American Red Cross

The Australian government is to donate $10 million to assist relief operations in the wake of hurricane Katrina in the United States.

The money will be given to the American Red Cross and used for emergency relief carried out by the organisation.

Prime Minister John Howard said: "Given the extraordinary generosity of the United States when other countries are in need, and given the very close relationship between Australia and the United States, and given also the scale of the disaster, we believe it is a very valuable gesture and a mark of our concern for the scale of the human misery that has come from this disaster."

Australia has also offered to send emergency management experts, who won international acclaim for their success during the Asian tsunami.

Despite the fact that George Bush is not winning any friends here by saying that the United States could take care of itself, scores of nations have sent offers of help.

Belgium, Canada, Russia, Japan, France, Germany, Britain, China, Australia, Jamaica, poverty stricken Honduras, Greece, Venezuela, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Greece, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, South Korea, Israel and the United Arab Emirates are amongst those who have offered assistance.