Trump withdraws US from 66 international organizations and UN agencies

International Desk

US President Donald Trump has formally announced the withdrawal of the United States from 66 key United Nations agencies and international organizations working on climate change, peacekeeping, and democracy promotion.

A presidential memorandum issued by the White House on Wednesday evening, January 7, stated that after the review, these organizations have been identified as being contrary to US interests. As a result, the United States will cease all participation in these organizations and related funding will be completely withdrawn.

Analysts see this decision as the most stringent implementation of Trump’s ‘America First’ policy in his second term.

The list published by the White House includes the names of 35 international organizations outside the United Nations. Notable among them is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is known as the leading scientific body in climate science worldwide. Despite this, the organization has also been included in the US withdrawal list.

The United States is also withdrawing from 31 UN agencies, including the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, the UNFPA, which works on maternal and child health, and the Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for the Protection of Children Affected by Conflict.

Despite withdrawing from international organizations, the Trump administration has been active in exerting influence on the global stage, including threatening sanctions on diplomats involved in opposing a decision to impose a tax on shipping fuel and imposing sanctions on Francesca Albanese, a UN special rapporteur who published a report on the massacre in Gaza.

Washington has also maintained its decision to stop funding UNRWA, the agency working for Palestinian refugees. There are also allegations that the United States is blocking many international initiatives by exercising its veto power as a permanent member of the Security Council.

Since taking office for his second term, the Trump administration has been withdrawing the United States from international organizations one after another, including the World Health Organization (WHO), the Paris Climate Agreement, and the United Nations Human Rights Council.

The United States’ withdrawal from the World Health Organization is set to take effect on January 22nd, which is being considered a major challenge in dealing with the global pandemic.

According to experts, about 18 percent of WHO’s total funding for diseases like tuberculosis and COVID-19 comes from the United States. Although these organizations were reinstated under Joe Biden, the Trump administration has reverted to its old position, creating new uncertainty in the international system.