奥巴马:英国石油公司同意赔偿

US President Barack Obama on Wednesday said that BP agreed to a 20-billion-dollar fund to cover damages from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. After a meeting with the company's executives, Obama said the money would be put in escrow and administered by a third party. He also made it clear that the fund did not imply there was a cap on the company's liability.

"BP's liabilities for the spill are significant, and they acknowledge that fact. We will continue to hold BP and all other responsible parties accountable, and I'm absolutely confident BP will be able to meet its obligations to the Gulf Coast and to the American People."

While public anger over BP persists, Obama said it is important that the oil company survives."BP is a strong and viable company, and it is in all our interests that it remains so. So what this is about is accountability. At the end of the day that's what every American wants and expects."

The 20-billion-dollar figure is roughly equal to BP's average annual profits over the past four years. Already millions of gallons of oil have poured into the gulf, falling a 120 miles off the US coast line, imperilling a multi-billion-dollar fishing industry and destroying wildlife in its way. Emerging from the White House after the meetings with the president, BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg promised to look after people affacted by the spill and to repair damage to the environment.

"We have agreed today with the president a framework that should assure the American people that we mean, we mean what we say."

The BP chairman also made an effort to apologize to the people of the gulf.

"I hear comment sometimes that large oil companies all are greedy companies that don't care, but that is not the case in BP. We care about the small people."

The oil spill was unleashed April 20th when the BP Deepwater Horizon rig exploded, killing 11 people. Government scientists now estimate that as much as 60,000 barrels per day continue to gush into the Gulf of Mexico.

Deri Lutherbeck, Reuters.