The United Nations could become unable to pay its staff and suppliers by September and its peacekeepers by mid-2025, following an outsized projected deficit and a leaked White House proposal to end funding for the intergovernmental body, according to reports.
The U.N.’s $200 million deficit in 2024 is measly compared to the $1.1 billion deficit the organization is projected to incur at the end of 2025, barring any budget cuts, according to The Economist. The deficit reportedly will hobble the organization’s ability to pay salaries and suppliers by September.
The U.N. is billed to inform its member states Saturday that its $3.7 billion budget intended to help it avoid default had already been slashed by 17%, according to the outlet. The U.N. reportedly will pause hiring new staff because of the cuts. U.N. peacekeepers risk becoming unpaid by mid-2025, Secretary-General António Guterres reportedly warned in February. (RELATED: ‘Global Shakedown’: Experts Throw Cold Water On International ‘Climate Reparations’ Fund)
Stringent budget rules and defaulting member states have left the U.N. cash strapped. A leaked Trump administration memo proposing to stop the U.S. from making mandatory contributions to the U.N. could bankrupt the body, according to the outlet.
The leaked April memo proposed an end to U.S. funding of the U.N. and its peacekeeping missions, as well as NATO and 20 other organizations. Also proposed were a 54% cut in U.S. humanitarian aid and a 55% cut in global health funding, according to the Washington Post. Congressional approval over the proposal reportedly remains to be seen.
President Donald Trump also signed an executive order Feb. 4 to withdraw U.S. membership of the U.N. and review the nation’s involvement in various international organizations.
U.N. mandatory dues — apportioned to member states based on the relative sizes of their economies — sustain the U.N.’s core functions, including General Assembly meetings, peacekeeping and human-rights monitoring, The Economist reported.
Late payments by some member states and shirking by others contributed to the funding crisis. Only 49 out of the U.N.’s 193 member states paid their mandatory dues on time in 2025.
The world’s two largest economies — the U.S. and China — are also the U.N.’s two largest contributors, with each contributing about 20% of the organization’s overall funding.
China, however, has begun to fall behind on payments, The Economist reported.
