The United Nations refutes Trump's criticism of "not getting the job done"

(Dan Tri) - The United Nations spoke out after US President Donald Trump said the agency was not doing its job well.

The United Nations has become the target of Mr. Trump's criticism (Photo: Reuters).

US President Donald Trump has criticized the United Nations as “not well run,” although he believes the organization has potential. On the other hand, he has withdrawn the US from the UN Human Rights Council, continued to suspend funding for the Palestinian relief agency UNRWA and ordered a review of the UN cultural agency, UNESCO.

"The United Nations has great potential and based on that potential, we will continue to cooperate with this agency, but they have to reorganize well. Frankly, they are not well run and not doing their job well," he said.

"Some of the conflicts that we're dealing with could have been resolved, or at least we should have gotten help to resolve them. We never seem to get help. That should be the main purpose of the United Nations," Mr. Trump said.

The United Nations later pushed back against Mr Trump's remarks. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres "has worked tirelessly to implement numerous reforms to enhance efficiency and innovation," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

“US support for the United Nations has saved countless lives and promoted global security. The Secretary-General looks forward to continuing his relationship with President Trump and the US government to strengthen that relationship in today’s turbulent world,” Dujarric said.

The United Nations Security Council consists of 15 members, of which the United States is one of five permanent members, responsible for maintaining international peace and security.

Mr Trump has said he does not want to withdraw funding from the 193-member global body, although he has complained that Washington pays a disproportionate amount.

Washington is the United Nations' largest donor, providing 22% of the organization's core budget and 27% of its peacekeeping budget.

In addition, Mr. Trump continued to stop funding UNRWA, an organization accused by Israel of opposing Tel Aviv and participating in "terrorist activities".

Last week, UNRWA Administrator Philippe Lazzarini said the agency had been the target of an “intense disinformation campaign.”

The United States is UNRWA's largest donor, providing between $300 million and $400 million a year, but former President Joe Biden suspended funding in January 2024 after Israel accused about 10 UNRWA staff of participating in a Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.

Several investigations have uncovered “issues relating to the neutrality” of UNRWA, but the parties have no evidence to support the Israeli allegations.

Mr Trump also asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to review international organisations, treaties or agreements that “promote extremist or anti-American ideology”. He specified that UNESCO should be the first to be reviewed because Washington has previously accused the agency of being biased against Israel.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/lien-hop-quoc-phan-bac-khi-bi-ong-trump-chi-trich-khong-lam-duoc-viec-20250205171307109.htm