U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered the United States to withdraw from 66 United Nations and international organisations, including major bodies involved in climate change, democracy and humanitarian work, the White House said on Wednesday.
In a presidential memorandum released by the White House, Trump said the decision followed a review of which “organisations, conventions and treaties are contrary to the interests of the United States.”
The move would end U.S. participation in the affected bodies and halt all associated funding, according to the memorandum.
The list includes 35 non-UN organisations, among them the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance and the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
The White House categorised the IPCC as a non-UN body, although it operates under the United Nations and brings together scientists to assess climate change research and provide assessments for policymakers.
The administration also said it would withdraw from 31 UN entities, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the UN Democracy Fund and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), which focuses on maternal and child health.
Several of the targeted UN bodies work on protecting vulnerable groups during armed conflicts, including the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.
In a note to correspondents late on Wednesday, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the organisation expected to respond to the announcement by Thursday morning.
Although Trump has repeatedly argued for reduced U.S. involvement in multilateral institutions, his administration has continued to exert influence on international decision-making.
In October last year, the United States threatened sanctions against diplomats involved in approving a levy on polluting shipping fuels, a move that delayed implementation of the agreement for a year, according to diplomats.
The administration also imposed sanctions on a UN special rapporteur after she published a report on the role of international and U.S. companies in Israel’s war in Gaza.
During his first term, Trump warned countries that voted in favour of a 2017 UN resolution criticising the U.S. decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital that they could lose U.S. aid.
As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, the United States holds veto power and has used it repeatedly to block resolutions related to Israel’s war in Gaza before mediating a ceasefire late last year.
Since beginning his second term in January last year, Trump has already ordered U.S. withdrawals from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Paris climate agreement and the UN Human Rights Council.
All three withdrawals were also carried out during Trump’s first presidency but were later reversed by former President Joe Biden.
The withdrawal from the WHO is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 22, 2026, one year after it was ordered. Between 2024 and 2025, the United States contributed about $261 million to the WHO, roughly 18% of its funding, according to WHO data.
The Trump administration has also maintained a U.S. funding ban on the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, which began under the Biden administration.
