Lawmakers Warn US Quitting UN Would Aid China's Expansion, Weaken Washington
En resumen
- US congressional hearing examines UN reform as China expands influence through Belt and Road funding.
- Lawmakers warn quitting would benefit Beijing while US$2.2 billion in arrears remain unpaid.
Resumen generado por IA
Por qué importa
The Trump administration has pursued an 'America first' funding strategy over 18 months, pushing UN to financial crisis point while China expands diplomatic influence through infrastructure spending in developing nations.
The United Nations is bloated, costly, badly in need of reform, and too often works against US interests, but pulling out of the international organisation would see China expand its influence and leave Washington at a major disadvantage, according to testimony before a House oversight committee on Wednesday.
The hearing came as the administration of US President Donald Trump has imposed an "America first" overhaul of international funding, leaving the UN, over the past 18 months, at what Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called a "financial breaking point".
US arrears currently amount to some US$2.2 billion for its regular budget and US$1.8 billion for peacekeeping.
"There is something systematically rotten within the organisation, but it doesn't mean we should abandon it," said Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat from Florida. "Abandoning the UN just speeds China's progress there."
Moscowitz added that China controls more votes than the US does by leveraging its funding of Belt and Road Initiative projects in Latin America and Africa to garner diplomatic support.
"You know, they went around and spent a tonne of money in all these small countries and picked up a tonne of votes at the UN," he told the House Foreign Affairs Oversight and Intelligence Subcommittee.
Preguntas abiertas
- Will the US actually withdraw from the UN?
- How will China further expand influence if US leaves?
- What reforms could make the UN more favorable to US interests?
