“Equally important is our assistance to Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation with strong ties and interests in Afghanistan,” Secretary Clinton told the House Foreign Affairs Committee while urging lawmakers earlier not to reduce US aid to Kabul. “We are working to deepen our partnership and keep it focused on addressing Pakistan’s political and economic challenges as well as our shared threats,” she said.

The UK is prepared for a humanitarian aid effort after the political turmoil in Libya, International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell has said. The UN estimates that 100,000 people have fled Libya over the past week into neighbouring Egypt and Tunisia.

Two decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union ended the days when Cold War allies could count on its largesse, Moscow has embarked on a soft-power campaign of aid to increase its clout and burnish its international image.

The Obama administration is hoping the aid program to Pakistan [USAID], the second-largest recipient of U.S. civilian aid after Afghanistan, will help stabilize the fragile but strategically important country and boost America's image among ordinary Pakistanis.

New Delhi has pledged $1.3 billion in reconstruction aid to the violence-racked nation since 2001, making it Afghanistan's fifth-largest donor. It has built roads and hospitals, maintained a generous visa policy and educated many of the country's top leaders, including Karzai, who was scheduled to arrive Wednesday for a two-day visit.

In the immediate aftermath of the January 2010 earthquake, the United States, the United Nations, and the international community sprang to the country's aid. U.S. Navy ships and aircraft, including the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, the amphibious assault ships USS Bataan and USS Nassau, and the hospital ship USNS Comfort, deployed to Haiti to deliver relief supplies and medical assistance.

More than $300 million dollars and thousands of volunteers — all powered by religious faith — have poured in to earthquake-shattered Haiti to help rebuild the country and restore its spirit. Although international governmental aid is the mainstay of Haiti relief, faith-based groups offer significant muscle in funds and volunteers.

The philosophy is that the military can secure an area, while civilians implement quick impact development projects meant to win the support of Afghans. Hillary Clinton calls the strategy “smart power” and praises the inter-agency coordination it has brought to U.S. involvement there.