The UN’s credibility has been weakened by a shifting world order, rising global conflicts, deep power rivalries, and structural constraints, especially the UN Security Council’s veto. The organization is also facing a major financial crisis, with arrears in compulsory contributions now reaching nearly $1.6 billion. In response, the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterress, has proposed reducing the 2026 core budget by almost $600 million, a cut that would entail major downsizing across all main areas of UN work.[1] These measures are part of the UN80 reform initiative he launched in March, aimed at cutting costs and improving organizational efficiency.
At the heart of this funding crisis lies the role of the United States, the UN’s largest contributor. For decades, the US served as both architect and guarantor of the multilateral system, with its political leadership and financial backing central to the UN’s functioning. That role is now being visibly relinquished under President Donald Trump’s administration. The US has again withdrawn from multiple UN agencies and agreements while imposing sweeping funding cuts, with direct consequences for operations such as peacekeeping. This retreat undermines UN-led multilateralism, diminishes the organization’s operational capacity, and weakens the leadership role of the US. It raises the question of whether Washington is now overseeing the unravelling of the very system it once helped create, while creating a power vacuum that other member states could exploit. Attention has increasingly turned to China, which positions itself as a defender of UN multilateralism, especially as it has become the UN’s second-largest funder after the US. However, despite its growing influence within the UN system, China has shown little inclination to fill in the US funding gaps at the UN, thereby raising questions about the nature of the multilateralism it claims to defend.
[1] “Secretary-General's Remarks to the Fifth Committee on the Revised Estimates UN80 Relating to the Proposed Programme Budget for 2026 and the Support Account for 2025/2026,”
Statement, UN Secretary-General, United Nations, accessed on 11/12/2025, at:
https://acr.ps/1L9BPpE
