UN Secretary-General António Guterres seems to be bracing his staff ahead of possible changes in U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump. In a letter distributed to UN staff, Guterres warned of the ‘difficult challenge’ facing the international body.
‘I assure you that we are working closely with colleagues throughout the United Nations system to understand and mitigate the extent of its impact on our operations,’ Guterres wrote in the letter.
‘Now, more than ever, the work of the United Nations is crucial. As we face this difficult challenge, your dedication and support will help us to overcome and move forward. Together, we will ensure that our Organization continues to serve people in need around the world with unwavering commitment.’
In response to a Fox News request for comment, Guterres’ spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said, ‘From day one, US support for the United Nations has saved countless lives and advanced global security. The Secretary-General looks forward to continuing his productive relationship with President Trump and the US Government to strengthen that relationship in today’s turbulent world.’
‘As President Trump has indicated, the UN plays a crucial role in taking on big challenges so that individual countries don’t have to do it on their own at far greater expense. With the letter, the Secretary-General was keeping staff informed,’ Dujarric added.’
Former Principal Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Hugh Dugan told Fox News Digital that ‘UN entities from the top down are feeling very anxious,’ citing someone extremely senior in the UN. Dugan believes that DOGE and his own organization DOGE-UN are causes of concern for Guterres due to ‘heightened accountability’ from Washington.
‘And I think that they’re going to have to scramble to show that they’ve been trustworthy with those resources and have been careful in accounting for their ultimate disposition, because I expect that we’re going to find that’s not been the case,’ Dugan said.
This letter was sent just over two weeks after President Trump issued his Executive Order on Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid.
‘It is the policy of the United States that no further United States foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States,’ Trump’s order reads.
While the order calls for a 90-day pause in foreign programs, it includes a clause giving Secretary of State Marco Rubio the authority to ‘waive the pause in Section 3(a) for specific programs.’
Trump administration officials claim to have uncovered several areas of government waste when it comes to foreign funding. This includes a $1.5 million US Agency for International Development (USAID) project aimed at advancing DEI in Serbian workplaces and a $2 million program promoting ‘LGBT activism’ in Guatemala.
In her first briefing, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that DOGE and OMB found ‘that there was about to be $50 million taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza.’
‘That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money. So that’s what this pause is focused on, being good stewards of tax dollars,’ Leavitt told reporters at the briefing.
At first glance, the funding for condoms in Gaza could seem like it would be aimed at public health. However, Hamas has used condoms in the past to fly incendiary devices and IEDs into Israel, as the Jerusalem Post reported in 2020.
During his 2024 campaign, Trump took aim at government spending, ultimately introducing DOGE to tackle waste.
Following Trump’s order, Secretary Rubio paused all US foreign assistance programs funded by or through the State Department and USAID pending review.
‘Reviewing and realigning foreign assistance on behalf of hardworking taxpayers is not just the right thing to do, it is a moral imperative,’ the State Department statement read. ‘The Secretary is proud to protect America’s investment with a deliberate and judicious review of how we spend foreign assistance dollars overseas.’
In the same statement, the State Department emphasized Secretary Rubio’s focus on ensuring the programs his department funds are working for Americans and are ‘consistent with US foreign policy under the America First agenda.’