Specialists say Trump administration’s order to halt overseas help will ‘value many, many lives’.
The top of the United Nations has expressed concern about President Donald Trump’s determination to pause overseas help from the USA as his administration promotes its “America First” agenda.
Throughout a information convention on Monday, a spokesman for Antonio Guterres stated the UN secretary-general had famous the coverage change “with concern”.
“He calls for extra exemptions to be thought-about to make sure the continued supply of essential growth and humanitarian actions for probably the most susceptible communities world wide,” Stephane Dujarric advised reporters.
“These lives and livelihoods rely on this assist,” stated Dujarric, including that the US is “one of many largest support suppliers” on this planet.
“We’re at present mapping out what [the Trump administration’s decision] means and the impression that it will have.”
Trump signed an govt order shortly after he was sworn in for a second time period on January 20, ordering all federal authorities businesses to enact a 90-day pause on overseas growth help and to assessment present programmes.
“It’s the coverage of United States that no additional United States overseas help shall be disbursed in a fashion that isn’t absolutely aligned with the overseas coverage of the President of the USA,” the order reads.
Days later, the US State Division stated in a memo that it was suspending virtually all new funding for overseas support programmes with exceptions for the nation’s prime Center East allies, Israel and Egypt.
The order on Friday additionally included an exemption for emergency meals help and associated bills.
“President Trump acknowledged clearly that the USA is now not going to blindly dole out cash with no return for the American individuals,” the division stated in an announcement on Sunday defending the measures.
The assertion additionally affirmed newly confirmed Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s assist for the Trump-led coverage.
“Reviewing and realigning overseas help on behalf of hardworking taxpayers is not only the best factor to do, it’s a ethical crucial. The Secretary is proud to guard America’s funding with a deliberate and even handed assessment of how we spend overseas help {dollars} abroad.”
However consultants have slammed the Trump administration’s determination, saying it’s going to have disastrous penalties for individuals world wide.
A worldwide stop-work order on overseas support will value many, many lives if saved in place.As written, it halts ALL ongoing humanitarian reduction actions, besides meals support, in locations like Syria, Sudan, Gaza.Additionally halts all world well being packages.What this can imply in human phrases:🧵t.co/1nCjZFfBdS
— Jeremy Konyndyk (@jeremykonyndyk.bsky.social) 2025-01-25T03:33:26.842Z
Michael Schiffer, who served because the assistant administrator of the US Company for Worldwide Growth’s (USAID) Asia bureau from 2022 to 2025, stated stopping overseas support — even briefly — may have “apparent, predictable outcomes”.
“Youngsters will die. Our nationwide safety will erode. America’s alliances will undergo. US companions might be in danger. And America’s enemies will rejoice,” Schiffer warned in a column for the web site Simply Safety.
Jeremy Konyndyk, president of Refugees Worldwide and an ex-USAID official below former Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, additionally stated “a worldwide stop-work order on overseas support will value many, many lives if saved in place”.
Konyndyk famous that US overseas help goes to addressing famine in Sudan, supporting refugees in Africa and Asia, and funding HIV/AIDS therapy programmes world wide.
“It’s no exaggeration in any respect to say that following by on this coverage will kill lots of people,” he wrote on social media.
“It is going to additionally shred US world credibility in a lot of the world, the place our help packages are an enormous share of our nation partnerships.”
