the response in the philippines to typhoon haiyan has been seen as a global best practice, and edges gathered with secretary gail -- secretary hagel to learn from that example. one reason that was so successful was the ability to use food purchase locally to meet the needs of children who otherwise would have suffered from hunger. and quickly scale up a program to reach 3 million people in the context of a natural disaster. we look forward to further discussions and support on the president's proposal to take food aid reform forward with request for 25% flexibility in the program. we know that we're currently facing three-level three emergencies around the world, syria and its neighbors, essential after republican, and south sudan. given the pressures that will place, we will appreciate opportunity work with the committee to continue to optimize our response. we just for democratic governance, civil society and human rights throughout the world in our programs. one manifestation of that was our support for the afghan elections this past weekend which i believe defied expectations in

by the united nations, leading the recovery and emergency efforts in the weeks following typhoon haiyan. >> what about the philippines, the people there - are they happy with the increased milita military presence in their country? >> over the years there has been mixed reactions towards the u.s. presence here. when they were - they officially left earlier in the 1990s left. a few years ago, about five soldiers were connected of raping a filipino and they were sentenced to life in prip, to be served in philippine's jails. a few weeks after that, through the help of the previous government, the u.s. government managed to take them off the philippine gaol and no one knows where they are at this point. local groups, militant groups accused the u.s. government of dumping toxic waste in the northern parts of the philippines. these allegedly were dumped by u.s. military trips. it was said that it was not done directly by the u.s. government, but perpetrated by the u.s. contractors. these are unpopular event which may have marred the reputation of the u.s. forces. however, anti-china sentiment

assistance and coordination is coordinating with civilian and military actors we saw with typhoon haiyan. this is one technology. we used others as well to make sure we're coordinated and swift and aggressive how we respond to thing and we have data back so we know who is receiving aid and where there are pockets of need in the midst of a crisis where data is often difficult to come by. >> if you could provide the cost benefit information i would appreciate that. >> sure. >> the next question, asia-pacific committee which i had honor to chair and did quite a bit in cambodia in run-up to elections not surprisingly we believe were vote rigged and overall unfair elections. at the time i introduced legislation calling for more accountable foreign assistance for cambodia. that legislation stated that if the elections were in the deemed free or fair, cambodia should be ineligible for direct u.s. assistance to support its military and police and the state department and usaid should jointly reassesses and reduce, if appropriate assistance for cambodia. the consolidated appropriations act of 201

typhoon haiyan showed the world how vulnerable the fill yooenz as well as other developing countriesre to natural disasters. as such humanitarian assistance and disaster response is ab essential component of our cooperation. as the united states and american people have always been ready to support us in the aftermath of disasters so, too do we look forward to the continued cooperation of the united states and the rest of our partners in the international community. >> but also in fostering inclusive growth across the entire country. president obama and i recognize the importance of strong economic engagement for the continued growth of both the philippines and united states. on this note we express our appreciation for the u.s.'s support for the government's programs under the partnership for growth framework which enhances the economic growth for u.s. $145 million total plan contribution from the u.s.a.i.d. u.s. sorpt is also core to the mill challenge corporation which supports the implementation of projects on road infrastructure, poverty reduction, and good governance with a $43

while there -- haiyan. while there we learned that said is juicing goelocators to detect precisely where aid is being delivered and by whom. it will help reduce the overlap of aid. effort ctive has this been and how has this technology been used in other countries and if so where and what are the cost benefits of implementing this type of tracking method? >> thank you, sir. i don't have the data to speak to the cost benefit of that specific strategy at this point, but one of the efforts we -- >> could you provide that? >> absolutely. >> thank you. >> one of the things we've done over the last few years is to really work hard to improve coordination and our lead role in coordination with the u.n. and with a range of other partners. that's actually why i went out to co-chair with secretary hagel the defense minute steerial assistance because often coordination is about coordinating with civilian and military actors, as we saw with typhoon haiyan. this is one technology. we've used others as well to help make

typhoon haiyan killed 6,000 in philippines. malaysia coping with the disappearance of the missing flight 370 and the ferry sinking. >> he viewed the devastation caused by a mud slide in oso. he recalled a letter he got from a firefighter there. >> i have to say that the families that i met with showed incredible strength and grace through unimaginable pain and difficulty. uniformly, though, they all wanted to thank the first responders. they were deeply appreciative of the efforts that everybody has made, and i know that many of the first responders have heard that directly, but it doesn't hurt to repeat that we're very appreciative of what you've done. >> at least 41 people were killed when the landslide buried dozens of homes. two people are still missing. >> hundreds of american troops are headed to eastern europe because of the simmering situation in ukraine. the pentagon is sending 600 soldiers, 150 of them already arriving in poland. it is in response to what the u.s. is calling the russian aggression. ukraine's interim g