The announcement hit like a diplomatic earthquake. In a single sweeping move, the United States is walking away from dozens of global institutions it helped build. Allies are stunned. Critics are furious. Supporters are calling it liberation. As funding is slashed and doors slam shut, the question haunting Washington and the world is simple: what hap… Continues…
Donald Trump’s decision to pull the United States out of dozens of international and UN organizations marks a deliberate, symbolic break with the post–World War II order that Washington once championed. By targeting agencies tied to climate, women’s rights, population policy, arms control, and development, the administration is broadcasting a message: U.S. power will be wielded on its own terms, not through multilateral compromise. For supporters, this is overdue course correction, a rejection of “globalist” institutions they see as unaccountable, ideological, and hostile to American sovereignty and industry.
For critics at home and abroad, the retreat looks less like strength and more like self-inflicted isolation. They warn that abandoning the table means surrendering influence over rules, standards, and crises that will continue with or without U.S. input. The United States may save money and score political points, but it risks discovering too late that stepping back from the world does not stop the world from shaping America’s future.