UN to cut quarter of peacekeepers worldwide amid funding shortfall

The United Nations will withdraw around a quarter of its peacekeeping troops and police officers in 11 missions around the world in the coming months due to a lack of funds, senior UN officials said.

"Overall, we will have to repatriate around 25% of our total peacekeeping troops and police, as well as their equipment, and a large number of civilian staff in missions will also be affected," a senior UN official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

That represents between 13,000 and 14,000 personnel, according to the official.

The UN’s financial crisis has deepened amid growing uncertainty over future payments from the United States, its largest contributor.

Washington provides more than 26 percent of the UN peacekeeping budget, followed by China, which contributes nearly 24 percent.

These payments are mandatory under UN rules.

The US was already $1.5 billion in arrears before the new financial year began on July 1, a second UN official said.

Washington now owes a further $1.3 billion, bringing its total outstanding bill to over $2.8 billion.

The US has told the UN it plans to make a partial payment of $680 million soon, according to the first official.

Trump administration cuts

US President Donald Trump, in August, cancelled about $800 million in peacekeeping funding that had been appropriated for 2024 and 2025, according to a message his administration sent to Congress.

The White House budget office has also proposed eliminating all US funding for UN peacekeeping operations in 2026, citing failures in missions in Mali, Lebanon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The cuts come as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres seeks to restructure the organisation and improve efficiency amid what he has described as a "deep cash crisis" as the UN marks its 80th anniversary.

The UN currently has missions in the Middle East, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, Kosovo, Cyprus, the Central African Republic, Western Sahara, the Golan Heights, Abyei, and Kashmir.

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Source: TRT