USAID, the independent federal government agency that provides humanitarian and development asistance under the foreign policy guidance of the Secretary of State spent $2.4 billion across the whole of the Middle East in 2007, including all reconstruction efforts in Iraq. The Bush administration did very little to acknowledge the humanitarian crisis it had brought about in Iraq let alone try to address it. In contrast, Obama pledged $2 billion in assistance for Iraq’s refugee crisis alone (the number of displaced civillians is around 5 million now) on top of a committment to an immediate and phased withdrawal.

More on what Obama means for Iraq here.

If Obama keeps his promise, this among other things will mark the beginnings of a new chapter in US-Middle East relations.