27 October 2004	Wednesday	12 Ramazan 1425

WASHINGTON, Oct 26: The Bush administration, faced with a growing insurgency and record fuel costs, plans early next year to seek 50 billion dollars to 75 billion dollars in emergency funding for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan , administration and congressional officials said on Tuesday.

The White House Office of Management and Budget said it was premature to discuss the size of the upcoming supplemental spending request, which would bring total US funding for military operations and reconstruction efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan to as much as 280 billion dollars.

The White House said President George W. Bush, if re-elected on Nov 2, would submit his next funding request to the US Congress in late January or early February, following a full assessment of the Pentagon's needs in the coming months.

The White House had initially said the Pentagon would need around 50 billion dollars in additional funding early next year. But officials familiar with the deliberations said the final package could total as much as 75 billion dollars, and possibly more if the anti-American fighting intensifies and the United States is forced to send additional troops to Iraq.

Democratic critics accused Bush and his top advisers of understating the costs to bolster support for war.-Reuters