The Trump management has in contemporary weeks weighed chopping ties with the UN refugee company (UNHCR), prompting a marketing campaign via diplomats and UN officers to steer america to handle make stronger, resources accustomed to the topic informed Reuters.
8 resources, together with diplomats, assist resources and a congressional supply, informed Reuters that Washington, traditionally UNHCR’s biggest donor, has been bearing in mind disengaging from the company. A number of stated a choice have been anticipated closing week, however no announcement used to be made, suggesting that the lobbying effort could have helped prolong or avert a transfer.
Reuters granted the resources anonymity to talk about UN members of the family with the USA
The United States deliberations over leaving UNHCR, which used to be created within the aftermath of International Battle Two to assist refugees fleeing struggle, persecution and violence, apply a confrontation over the appointment of the deputy prime commissioner, 5 of the resources stated.
They stated that the company had knowledgeable supporters that it might be put on a US blacklist, finishing investment, and that Washington may additionally withdraw from its governing Government Committee.
Sudanese refugees who crossed into Chad are assisted via humanitarian companies in Koufroun, close to Echbara, on Might 1, 2023. (credit score: GUEIPEUR DENIS SASSOU/AFP by means of Getty Pictures)
Any finish to US investment would severely weaken the company at a time of near-record ranges of displacement all over the world amid long-running conflicts like Ukraine and Sudan, diplomats and assist officers stated.
“People have been alerted by UNHCR to call friends in the administration,” a source at an aid group involved in the talks told Reuters, saying that many had done so. “They are at least thinking about it,” the source added.
Another diplomat said UNHCR officials had asked supporters in the past week to use all available diplomatic channels with the United States to urge ongoing support.
A UN refugee agency spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. “We have no comment on this issue because we have no information on it,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
A State Department spokesperson said there have not been any changes to Washington’s engagement with UNHCR. “As with many other international organizations, we work with and through UNHCR when doing so is useful to advance US foreign policy interests or save lives.”
“We will continue to evaluate the United States’ role in international organizations…” the spokesperson added, referring to a February 2025 Executive Order to review US participation and funding.
Since beginning his second term last year, US President Donald Trump has cut funding for UN agencies and withdrawn from dozens of UN entities, including the World Health Organization. Trump officials have also urged other nations to join a global campaign to roll back asylum protections.
Leadership dilemma
The dispute centers on last month’s appointment of US career diplomat Tressa Rae Finerty as UNHCR’s deputy high commissioner.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih chose Finerty over Simon Hankinson, a US-backed candidate and former foreign service officer who has accused the UNHCR of pursuing “a mass migration agenda.”
“If they wanted reform, a return to UNHCR’s original mission of helping actual refugees, and a careful inspection of budgets and spending, I was the guy,” he informed Reuters, calling Finerty a “business as usual” candidate.
Reuters may no longer succeed in Finerty for remark.
A former senior UNHCR authentic stated Salih, a former Iraqi president and refugee, would have confronted interior “uproar” had he backed Hankinson.
Other UN agencies like the International Labor Organization have also faced dilemmas over appointing US officials amid questions about the US commitment to global cooperation.
Andrew Veprek, Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration who has espoused anti-migration views, was involved in backing Hankinson’s candidacy, two of the sources said. The US State Department declined to comment on his involvement.
UNHCR’s top donor
The US was the top donor to UNHCR in 2025, giving $868 million or about a quarter of the total contributions, according to the agency.
UNHCR is already facing a financial crisis after available funding fell roughly 30% in 2025 compared with 2024, Reuters reported. The agency has cut thousands of jobs and announced further cuts this year.
Diplomats and aid officials said a full US withdrawal would deepen the crisis and undermine support for the 1951 Refugee Convention, the cornerstone of the post-war refugee protection system.
“Rethinking it will be an existential danger for UNHCR,” the previous UNHCR authentic stated. “It could have a massive knock-on effect.”
