The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday urged Congress to approve President Barack Obama's request for additional funding for the International Monetary Fund (IMF), saying it was in the country's “national interest.” Describing the IMF as the “first line of defense” in the global economic crisis, the Treasury appealed to lawmakers to approve a total of $108 billion in new funding. “A well-equipped IMF is in the national interest,” it said in a statement. “The recovery of the global economy is critical to restoring U.S. exports and jobs.” The Treasury noted that at a Group of 20 summit this spring in London, Obama “secured agreement to increase the IMF New Arrangements to Borrow (NAB) by up to $500 billion, of which the United States committed up to $100 billion.” Obama has requested that Congress approve the $100 billion increase and an $8 billion rise in the U.S. quota in the 185-country IMF as part of a supplemental budget for fiscal-year 2009, which ends September 30.
