U.S. looks to transfer tsunami relief

BANGKOK, Jan. 15 (UPI) -- A top U.S. military official said Saturday the United States wants to turn over tsunami relief efforts to regional governments as soon as possible.

"We'd like to be out of this business as soon as we responsibly can," said Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, touring South Asian relief operations, the BBC reported.

The U.S. military has "a lot of other work to do" and will end its relief efforts "as soon as our military folks can pass these responsibilities on to other folks," he said.

The Indian Ocean tsunamis have killed more than 162,000 people. Indonesia reports a death toll of more than 110,000, most of them killed in Aceh.