President Trump is withholding a $65 million payment to the United Nations agency responsible for assisting Palestinian refugees.
That represents a cut of over 50% as the Trump administration works to reform the UN.
President Trump says the UN has for too long trashed America while the US sends them money, more than any other country in the world.
According to Breitbart:
“The Trump administration on Tuesday informed the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which ministers to so-called Palestinian refugees, that it is providing tens of millions of dollars less than its annual pledge to the agency.
The Jerusalem Post reported:
Trump heeded the advice of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defense James Mattis and National Security Advisor H. R. McMaster— in addition to that of the Israeli government— and agreed to deliver $60 million in US assistance to the UN body for now, as opposed to cutting all aid outright. But the remaining pledge— $65 million— has been withheld “for future consideration,” according to a letter sent to the agency.
“There is a need to undertake a fundamental re-examination of UNRWA, both in the way it operates and the way it is funded,” a State Department official said.
The official was cited by the AFP framing the decision to withhold funds as intended to encourage “burden-sharing” by other U.N. members.”