- NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) --Shortcomings
in aid from the US government are making New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin look
to other nations for help in rebuilding his hurricane-damaged city.
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- Nagin, who has hosted a steady stream of foreign dignitaries
since Hurricane Katrina hit in late August, says he may seek international
assistance because U.S. aid has not been sufficient to get the city back
on its feet.
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- "I know we had a little disappointment earlier with
some signals we're getting from Washington but the international community
may be able to fill the gap," Nagin said when a delegation of French
government and business officials passed through on Friday to explore potential
business partnerships.
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- Jordan's King Abdullah also visited New Orleans on Friday
and Nagin said he would encourage foreign interests to help redevelop some
of the areas hardest hit by the storm.
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- "France can take Treme. The king of Jordan can take
the Lower Ninth Ward," he said, referring to two of the city's neighborhoods.
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- Katrina flooded 80 percent of the city and killed more
than 1,300 people in Louisiana and Mississippi.
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- The Bush administration has pledged billions of dollars
to Katrina victims but five months after the storm, New Orleans remains
largely in ruins.
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- Nagin said his message to President George W. Bush would
be that the federal government needs to refocus on the devastated area.
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- "We need your undivided attention over the next
six months," he said. "We need backup. We need for you to make
the words that you spoke in Jackson Square a reality."
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- Nagin was referring to the president's September 15 address
to the nation from New Orleans, in which he pledged "we will do what
it takes, we will stay as long as it takes" to rebuild.
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- French Transport Minister Dominique Perben, leading the
French delegation to a city that was founded by France in 1718, said, "This
catastrophe has deeply upset the French people and the French government."
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- France, Perben said through a translator, "wants
to be a long-term partner for Louisiana and New Orleans."
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