UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations is set to reduce its global peacekeeping force by 25%, a move that will see thousands of troops withdrawn from conflict zones over the coming months. The decision follows significant funding cuts from the United States, the UN’s largest financial contributor.
A senior UN official, speaking anonymously, confirmed on Wednesday that approximately 13,000 to 14,000 military and police personnel—out of more than 50,000 currently deployed across nine missions—will be sent home. The UN support office in Somalia is among the operations affected. The peacekeeping budget will also be trimmed by around 15% this year.
Peacekeeping missions in countries such as Congo, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Lebanon, Cyprus, and Kosovo will feel the impact of the reductions.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has defended the value of peacekeeping, noting that its budget represents just half a percent of global military spending and remains one of the most effective tools for promoting international peace and security.
The cuts come in the wake of a high-level meeting between Guterres and donor nations, including newly appointed US Ambassador to the UN, Mike Waltz. The Trump administration has argued that many UN agencies are bloated and inefficient, and has pledged to withhold further contributions until a full review of each program’s effectiveness is completed.
Since President Donald Trump began his second term in January, the US has withdrawn from several multilateral institutions, including UNESCO, the World Health Organization, and the UN Human Rights Council, while reassessing funding for others.
More than 60 UN offices and agencies are now facing 20% job reductions as part of Guterres’ broader reform strategy and in response to the US budget cuts.
In a recent television interview, Waltz stated that the US aims to refocus the UN on its core mission: “promoting peace, enforcing peace, preventing wars,” adding, “We have to cut out all of this other nonsense.”
UN peacekeeping has expanded dramatically since the early 1990s, growing from 11,000 personnel to a peak of 130,000 in 2014. Today, around 52,000 peacekeepers serve in 11 conflict zones across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
The US has committed $680 million to nine peacekeeping missions this year—a sharp decline from the $1 billion it contributed last year. These funds will be directed toward active missions, particularly those of strategic interest to Washington, such as operations in Lebanon and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Together, the US and China account for nearly half of the UN’s peacekeeping budget. A second UN official confirmed that China intends to fulfill its full financial commitment by year-end.
