The significant changes will lead the US to withdraw from key forums focused on climate change, peace and democracy.
The Trump administration says it’s going to withdraw the United States from 66 international organisations, including 31 United Nations entities and 35 non-UN organisations.
Many focus on climate, labour, migration and other issues the Trump administration has categorised as catering to diversity and “woke” initiatives and that are “contrary to the interests of the United States”.
Here is a list of all the agencies that the US is exiting, according to the White House:
In the new memorandum, the administration moved beyond the Paris Agreement to target the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) itself, which is the foundational 1992 treaty that the Paris Agreement is built upon. By withdrawing from the UNFCCC, the administration aims to exit the entire international framework for climate negotiations.
The withdrawal from the UNFCCC is particularly significant as it is a Senate-ratified treaty. The administration’s authority to unilaterally withdraw from such treaties is expected to face legal challenges.
Notably, the US remains a member of the UN Security Council, the World Food Programme (WFP), and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), which the administration identified as serving essential security or humanitarian functions.