US Plan for 10 Billion Dollar Persian Gulf Energy Rebuild Fund Revealed

According to the Wall Street Journal, cited by Donya-e-Eqtesad and Khabar Online, the administration of Donald Trump is considering investing 5 billion dollars in a fund called the Partnership for Allied Trust and Construction (PACT). Under the plan, eight countries, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq and Jordan, would add another 5 billion dollars combined, bringing the fund's total to 10 billion dollars. The fund, to be managed by the US Development Finance Corporation, aims to rebuild energy infrastructure, pipelines and refineries, damaged during the seven month war between the United States and Iran, and to reduce the region's energy export dependence on the Strait of Hormuz. Talks on the fund are still underway, and US officials say details and the timing of each country's participation could change. Some regional officials have warned that funding reconstruction before a deal with Tehran is premature, since rebuilt facilities could again become targets.