CIA chief George Tenet warned on Tuesday that the global HIV/AIDS epidemic "continues unabated" and presents a threat to international stability.

"The national security dimension of the virus is plain," Tenet warned in his twice-yearly testimony to the Senate intelligence committee.

"It can undermine economic growth, exacerbate social tensions, diminish military preparedness, create huge social welfare costs and further weaken beleaguered states - and the virus respects no border." Tenet said, "The intelligence community recently projected that by 2010, we may see as many as 100 million HIV-infected people outside of Africa.

"China will have about 15 million cases; in India, 20 (million) to 25 million cases; and cases are on the rise in Russia as well."
Africa has been hardest-hit by the killer-virus, especially ravaging working-age populations, increasing poverty and conflict and creating huge social welfare costs.

"We rarely talk about Africa, ... but it's important," said Tenet, director of the Central Intelligence Agency. "Sub-Saharan Africa's chronic instability will demand U.S. attention."
Addressing Africa's other problems, he said that a lack of democratic institutions, pervasive ethnic rifts and deep corruption render most of the continent's 48 countries vulnerable to crises.

Ivory Coast is "collapsing", he warned. "Its crash will be felt throughout the region, where neighbouring economics are at risk from the falloff in trade and from refugees fleeing violence," said Tenet.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, addressing a separate congressional panel, said that the Bush administration's budget proposal calls for more than 1.3 billion dollars to combat the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Former president Bill Clinton, speaking on the NBC Today show earlier Tuesday, also warned that as many as 100 million people could be infected by the end of the decade.

"If that happens, it will threaten new democracies," he said.

"Two thirds of the cases are in Africa.

"But the fastest-growing rates are in the former Soviet Union first; second in the Caribbean, on our back door; third in India, the world's biggest democracy, almost a billion people; and fourth in China, the world's biggest country." - Sapa-DPA.