Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Fast Forward

Trump May Cut Funding to UN If It Recognizes Palestinian State

A massive cut in American funding for the United Nations could be in the works if President Trump signs an executive order prepared by his aides.

The order, first reported by the New York Times on Wednesday, will cut at least 40% of funding for the international body and its agencies, if they grant full membership status to the Palestinians.

Congress has already passed legislation requiring funding cuts to UN bodies that recognize a Palestinian state, resulting in a cut to American funding for UNESCO. Recently, following the UN Security Council’s vote condemning Israel’s settlements in the West Bank, several members of Congress introduced legislation calling for cuts in America’s funding for the UN.

Israel and the pro-Israel lobby in America have supported threats to cut funding for the UN if it grants full membership status to the Palestinian Authority, in hope that it can deter international agencies from taking this step.

But the presidential order, if enacted, could also potentially harm Israel, since it entails a cut to UN international peacekeeping forces, including those stationed alongside Israel’s border with Syria on the Golan Heights.

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected]

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.