U.S. President Donald J. Trump has ordered the United States to withdraw from dozens of international organizations, conventions, and UN bodies, deepening Washington’s shift away from multilateral engagement amid heightened global tensions following US military action in Venezuela and sharp reactions from world leaders.
In a January 7 memorandum, Trump said he had determined that continued participation in the listed bodies “is contrary to the interests of the United States,” directing all executive departments to “take immediate steps to effectuate the withdrawal of the United States… as soon as possible.”
The directive follows a review ordered under Executive Order 14199 and covers both non-UN bodies—such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, International Renewable Energy Agency, and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance—and a wide range of UN entities, including UN Women, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, UN Population Fund, and the Peacebuilding Commission.
“For United Nations entities,” the memorandum states, withdrawal means “ceasing participation in or funding to those entities to the extent permitted by law.”
The move comes days after US strikes in Venezuela and the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, actions that drew condemnation and alarm from several governments and multilateral institutions, with critics warning of erosion of the rules-based international order.
Allies in Europe and Latin America have urged restraint and renewed diplomacy, while rights and climate groups warned the US pullout would weaken global cooperation on conflict prevention, humanitarian protection, and climate action.
Trump said the review remains ongoing and instructed the Secretary of State to issue further guidance, adding that the memorandum “shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations.”