The Nation : Waste in Foreign Aid Cited

U.S. military officials in Turkey, Greece, Korea, Thailand and the Philippines have wasted at least $1.7 million in foreign aid, much of it on such extravagances as luxury housing and an improper flight to a birthday party, according to Pentagon audits obtained by United Press International. In Turkey, Defense Department officials used security assistance funds to lease an apartment for visiting dignitaries where a steward served meals and unlimited alcohol, the Pentagon’s inspector general reported. Visitors occupied the apartment for only 2 1/2 months during the year it was leased, the December, 1985, report said. Pentagon officials disputed many of the findings, calling the expenditures “valid” and “appropriate.”