Memorandum Orders Withdrawal from International Organizations Seen as Contrary to U.S. Interests
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby direct action consistent with Executive Order 14199 issued February 4, 2025. That order required the Secretary of State, working with the U.S. Representative to the United Nations, to review every international intergovernmental organization, treaty, and convention the United States funds or supports. The Secretary has reported back, and the White House has decided continued participation in many of these bodies is not in America’s interest.
Thirty-one UN Agencies got the funding axe, along with thirty-five other international do-gooder organizations, and they will be grieving the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. The egregious Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is also being cut. This is a real blow to the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. The UN has been a cesspool of anti-American rhetoric for decades, and many conservative organizations have called for a total pullout, including this writer.
The memorandum directs all executive departments and agencies to take immediate steps to effectuate withdrawal from the listed organizations as soon as possible. For United Nations entities, withdrawal means ceasing participation in or funding to those entities to the extent permitted by law. The administration frames this as reclaiming taxpayer dollars and protecting American sovereignty.
Section 2 of the memorandum lists the organizations targeted for withdrawal. Below are the non-United Nations organizations the memorandum names, followed by the United Nations entities the United States will stop funding or participating in.
- 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy Compact
- Colombo Plan Council
- Commission for Environmental Cooperation
- Education Cannot Wait
- European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats
- Forum of European National Highway Research Laboratories
- Freedom Online Coalition
- Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund
- Global Counterterrorism Forum
- Global Forum on Cyber Expertise
- Global Forum on Migration and Development
- Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research
- Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
- Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
- International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property
- International Cotton Advisory Committee
- International Development Law Organization
- International Energy Forum
- International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies
- International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance
- International Institute for Justice and the Rule of Law
- International Lead and Zinc Study Group
- International Renewable Energy Agency
- International Solar Alliance
- International Tropical Timber Organization
- International Union for Conservation of Nature
- Pan American Institute of Geography and History
- Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation
- Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combatting Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia
- Regional Cooperation Council
- Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century
- Science and Technology Center in Ukraine
- Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme
- Venice Commission of the Council of Europe
- Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) — Economic Commission for Africa
- ECOSOC — Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
- ECOSOC — Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
- ECOSOC — Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia
- International Law Commission
- International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals
- International Trade Centre
- Office of the Special Adviser on Africa
- Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children in Armed Conflict
- Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict
- Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children
- Peacebuilding Commission
- Peacebuilding Fund
- Permanent Forum on People of African Descent
- UN Alliance of Civilizations
- UN Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries
- UN Conference on Trade and Development
- UN Democracy Fund
- UN Energy
- UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
- UN Framework Convention on Climate Change
- UN Human Settlements Programme
- UN Institute for Training and Research
- UN Oceans
- UN Population Fund
- UN Register of Conventional Arms
- UN System Chief Executives Board for Coordination
- UN System Staff College
- UN Water
- UN University
Section 3 directs the Secretary of State to provide additional guidance to agencies when implementing the memorandum. Section 4 makes clear the memorandum will be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to appropriations. It also notes the memorandum does not create enforceable rights against the United States.
DONALD J. TRUMP