The UN will need more than $500 million to save refugees if the US attacks Afghanistan, Secretary-General Mr Kofi Annan has said.
Aid may have to be dropped from aircraft, Mr Annan said, since Afghanistan's ruling Taliban has forced foreign aid workers to leave the country. He said as much as 1,500 tonnes of stockpiled food had disappeared since the aid workers left.
UN agencies will need $584 million in all for the refugees, Mr Annan said.
The cost of caring for refugees includes $275 million for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and $188 million for food programmes. The rest would be used to provide health care, water, transportation and security, Mr Annan said.
Drought and years of civil war have already forced five million Afghans to flee their homes, and officials estimate the number could rise to 7.5 million.
Since the attacks on the US, all UN foreign workers have left Afghanistan. The Taliban have cracked down on the remaining Afghan employees, barring them from using their computers, communication equipment and UN vehicles.
UN workers only have access to parts of the north controlled by the Northern Alliance of Afghan opposition groups fighting the Taliban, Mr Annan said.
"For many other parts of the country, we do not have access or security for our staff. If it is deemed to be technically feasible, we may have to consider airdrops," Mr Annan said.
In Berlin yesterday, UN officials met government representatives from 14 Western donor countries, Russia and organisations in an emergency session called by Germany to rally the humanitarian response.
AP