Senate Republicans threaten UN funding if global body sidelines Israel

The United States is the largest contributor to the world body, giving it and its agencies $18 billion in 2022—about one-third of the total U.N. budget.

By Andrew Bernard, JNS

Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and 27 other Republican senators introduced legislation on Tuesday that would cut off U.S. funding to the United Nations and its subsidiary agencies if they downgrade Israel’s status.

“Reports indicate that the Palestinian Authority will attempt to downgrade Israel’s status at the United Nations” following a U.N. General Assembly vote in May, the 28 senators wrote.

That vote saw Palestinians gain new rights within their existing non-member “permanent observer” status, which is short of full U.N. membership.

“Any attempt to alter Israel’s status at the United Nations is clearly antisemitic,” Risch stated.

“That said, if the U.N. member states allow the Palestinian Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization to downgrade Israel’s status at the U.N., the U.S. must stop supporting the U.N. system, as it would clearly be beyond repair.”

Risch added that he is “disgusted that this outrageous idea has even been discussed and will do all we can to ensure any changes to Israel’s status will come with consequences.”

Titled the “Stand with Israel Act,” the bill would forbid the federal government from disbursing funds to “the United Nations or any of its funds, programs, specialized agencies or other related entities” if the global body “expels, downgrades or suspends membership, or otherwise restricts the participation of Israel.”

The United States is the largest contributor to the world body, giving it and its agencies $18 billion in 2022—about one-third of the total U.N. budget.

Those contributions are mandatory for members of the U.N. General Assembly under the global body’s “assessed contributions” system. Countries that fall into arrears on paying their contributions are stripped of their vote in the General Assembly.

Objections are longstanding in Washington to paying for the budget in Turtle Bay.

In 1982, then-Secretary of State George Schultz threatened U.S. withdrawal from any U.N. body that did not seat Israel. The United States nearly lost its General Assembly vote in a budget dispute in 1999.

Former president Donald Trump cut off funding to the U.N. Palestinian aid agency, UNRWA, in 2018 and negotiated a lower overall U.N. budget in 2017.

U.S. President Joe Biden restored funding to UNRWA before suspending it again in March after Israel accused employees of participating directly in the Hamas terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Several of the senators co-sponsoring the Stand with Israel Act said Jew-hatred at the United Nations undermines the agency’s effectiveness.

“A move to downgrade Israel’s status at the United Nations would be a new low, even for an organization that is as rife with antisemites as the United Nations,” stated Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.).

“Unfortunately, antisemitism has pervaded the United Nations for decades and discredits the U.N. mission,” stated Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska). “It must end.”

Under existing U.S. law, Washington must cut off funding to the United Nations or any of its subsidiaries if the Palestinians are granted full membership outside of a negotiated settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Reps. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) and Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) introduced companion legislation to the Senate act in the House in August with bipartisan support.