President Trump signed a presidential memorandum on Wednesday directing all executive departments and agencies to immediately begin withdrawing the United States from more than 60 international and United Nations-affiliated organizations, following a State Department review ordered earlier this year.
The memorandum stems from Executive Order 14199, issued February 4, 2025, which required the Secretary of State to evaluate U.S. participation in international organizations, treaties, and conventions to determine whether they conflict with American interests. After reviewing the findings and consulting with his Cabinet, President Trump concluded that continued membership, participation, or funding for the listed entities runs counter to U.S. interests.
Under the directive, agencies are instructed to take prompt steps to withdraw from both non-UN and UN bodies, with withdrawal from UN entities defined as ending participation or funding to the extent permitted by law. The administration noted that its review of additional organizations remains ongoing.
The organizations targeted include a broad range of environmental, climate, energy, governance, migration, development, cultural, and security-related bodies. Among them are the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the International Renewable Energy Agency, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the UN Population Fund, the UN Democracy Fund, the Peacebuilding Commission, and multiple UN economic and regional commissions operating under the Economic and Social Council.
The memorandum also orders withdrawal from numerous non-UN organizations, including global climate initiatives, international research and policy forums, democracy and rule-of-law institutes, and regional cooperation bodies across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
Read the Presidential Memorandum
