Hot SourceThe United Nations is preparing a major reduction of its global peacekeeping operations, cutting between 13,000 and 14,000 troops and police officers across nine missions worldwide, following sharp funding cuts from the United States under President Donald Trump’s renewed “America First” policy.
A senior UN official confirmed that the organisation will reduce personnel by roughly 25 per cent and its peacekeeping budget by about 15 per cent, affecting missions in South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lebanon, Kosovo, Cyprus, the Central African Republic, Western Sahara, the Golan Heights, and Abyei, a disputed area between Sudan and South Sudan.
Ghana, which has long been a key contributor to UN peacekeeping, officials say the mission in Sudan will retain 351 personnel, while 349 will be repatriated.
Discussions are also underway regarding Ghana’s contingent in Lebanon. The development is expected to affect a large number of Ghanaian soldiers who have benefited financially from peacekeeping assignments abroad.
Washington, the UN’s largest single peacekeeping contributor, has slashed its support from about US$1 billion to US$680 million, arguing that it will no longer fund what it calls “bloated and redundant” programmes. Ambassador Mike Waltz said the US wants the UN to “get back to basics.”
The US currently accounts for more than 26 per cent of the UN’s peacekeeping budget, followed by China, which contributes nearly 24 per cent. However, the US is already in arrears of over US$2.8 billion, according to UN officials. President Trump in August cancelled some US$800 million in funding appropriated for 2024 and 2025 and has proposed eliminating all peacekeeping support from 2026, citing failures in missions such as those in Mali, Lebanon, and Congo.
The cuts come as UN peacekeeping faces its most significant restructuring in decades. From just 11,000 personnel in the early 1990s, the number of peacekeepers grew to more than 130,000 at its peak. Currently, around 52,000 troops and police serve in 11 conflict zones.
China has pledged to meet its full financial obligations, but with more than 60 UN agencies facing job cuts, the future of international peacekeeping remains uncertain.
UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, has also launched a broader cost-cutting initiative as the organisation marks its 80th anniversary amid a deepening financial crisis.
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