The Trump administration is reportedly lobbying other nations to back a new “trade over aid” initiative, which would see them promoting “America First” values by investing in US companies – instead of splurging on overseas development projects.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered diplomats Wednesday to start gauging support for the proposal before it’s put forward at the United Nations at the end of the month, the Washington Post reported.
In a cable, he explained how the United Nations would be used to “promote America First values and create business opportunities for U.S. companies,” boasting that America has entered a “new Golden Age built on a booming economy fueled by pro-business policies: deregulation, lower taxes and a liberated energy industry.”
“It was private business that developed all the world’s successful economies, not government aid.”
A US diplomatic note, seen by Devex, shredded how richer nations have splurged billions of dollars on foreign aid projects.
“For decades, government aid has been flowing from developed to developing countries with only limited impact,” it says.
“It has not solved the world’s economic development challenges, and it has often created dependency, inefficiency, and corruption.”
Weeks after President Trump was inaugurated for the second time, plans were unveiled to eliminate approximately $60 billion in foreign aid spending by cutting 92% of grants issued by the US Agency for International Development – before it was later absolved into the State Department.
The audit identified nearly 15,000 grants and targeted almost 10,000 for elimination — the majority of which were issued by USAID – and first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
The US State Department vowed to address decades of so-called “institutional drift,” according to a memo seen by the outlet, and reform the way Washington delivers foreign assistance.
“Every dollar we spend, every program we fund, must be justified with the answer to three simple questions: Does it make America safe? Does it make America stronger? Does it make America more prosperous?” the note said.
The Free Beacon reported in March 2023 how the Biden administration gave the green light to spend up to $1 million of taxpayer cash on helping disabled people in Tajikistan become so-called climate leaders.
Senior State Department official Jeremy Lewin told The Post in January, “Every dollar of foreign assistance has to advance the American national interest.”
Western nations such as the UK are among those who have joined the US in cutting foreign aid expenditure amid a rise in defense spending because of the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict.
In February last year, UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, announced plans to increase foreign defense spending to 2.5% of national income from 2027.
The UK government is cutting around £6 billion ($8 billion) from its foreign aid budget – and spending is at its lowest level since 2008, the Guardian reported.
France, Germany, and Japan have also trimmed down their respective foreign aid budgets, as have the EU institutions.
