According to media reports Wednesday, President Donald Trump is preparing to do diplomatic battle with the United Nations in his effort to protect and strengthen the U.S. relationship with Israel.
He is currently drafting two executive orders that will address the U.N. and other treaties with multiple nations. The first deals specifically with the U.N. and organizations within it, cutting funding to those that offer full membership to the Palestinian Authority, as well as those led by nation-states that fund terrorist activities.
As The New York Times reports, the funding cut would be based on established criteria:
Those criteria include organizations that give full membership to the Palestinian Authority or Palestine Liberation Organization, or support programs that fund abortion or any activity that circumvents sanctions against Iran or North Korea. The draft order also calls for terminating funding for any organization that “is controlled or substantially influenced by any state that sponsors terrorism” or is blamed for the persecution of marginalized groups or any other systematic violation of human rights.
The order calls for then enacting “at least a 40 percent overall decrease” in remaining United States funding toward international organizations.
The order establishes a committee to recommend where those funding cuts should be made. It asks the committee to look specifically at United States funding for peacekeeping operations; the International Criminal Court; development aid to countries that “oppose important United States policies”; and the United Nations Population Fund, which oversees maternal and reproductive health programs.
The second order, a draft of which was titled “Moratorium on New Multilateral Treaties,” would review all existing and pending multinational agreements—the Paris Climate Treaty being one example—seeking recommendations of which ones the U.S. should abandon. Both are seen as direct swipes at the U.N.
Simultaneous to the report, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer indicated Trump wanted the U.S. to “wants to grow closer with Israel and make sure that it gets the full respect that it deserves in the Middle East.” The comments, made during a White House press briefing, were in response to a question about Israel’s announcement of 2,500 new housing units in the West Bank.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration froze a $221 million last-minute payment to the Palestinian Authority, which provides money to pay salaries to terrorists and their families. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Trump in Washington, D.C., next month. {eoa}
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