UN chief Antonio Guterres on Monday expressed concern after the United States, the world’s biggest foreign aid donor, froze virtually all assistance under President Donald Trump’s new administration.
On Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio published an internal memo outlining the stoppage and making only exceptions to military funding for Israel and Egypt and emergency food supplies.
Trump won the election last week and pledged to put “America first” before enraging all aid overseas.
Guterres “notes with concern the announcement of a pause in US foreign assistance”, his spokesman said in a statement.
The Secretary-General urges additional restrictions to be taken into account to ensure the continued funding of essential development and humanitarian projects.
According to Guterres, “the most vulnerable communities around the world, whose lives and livelihoods depend on this support,” assistance is crucial.
But he sought to strike a positive note on US relations, adding he “looks forward to engaging with the new United States administration” on the issue.
The US’s sweeping order appeared to have an impact on everything, including Ukraine, which received billions of dollars in weapons under Trump’s leadership as it fights a Russian invasion.
The directive also means a pause of US funding for PEPFAR, the anti-HIV/AIDS initiative that buys anti-retroviral drugs to treat the disease in developing countries, largely in Africa.
Washington has long used aid as a tool of international diplomacy, claiming to be concerned with development and drawing comparisons to China, which is primarily concerned with seeking natural resources.
Israel and Egypt were given exceptions in the US memo, which have long been the country’s main arms exports since the Gaza war.
Rubio also made a special case for providing emergency food for global crises, like those in Syria and Sudan.
Source: Channels TV
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