Diplomatic efforts seek to avert Trump split with UN refugee agency: Sources

Highlights:

• UNHCR urged supporters to press US officials, sources say
• Trump candidate critical of UNHCR missed out on No. 2 position
• US is on board of refugee agency, was its top donor
• Worries arise about future of UN Refugee Convention

The Trump administration has in recent weeks weighed cutting ties with the UN refugee agency, prompting a campaign by diplomats and UN officials to persuade the United States to maintain support, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

Eight sources including diplomats, aid sources and a congressional source told Reuters that Washington - historically UNHCR's largest donor - has been considering disengaging from the agency. Several said a decision had been expected last week, but no announcement was made, suggesting that the lobbying effort may have helped delay or avert a move.

Reuters granted the sources anonymity to speak about UN relations with the US.

The US deliberations over leaving UNHCR, which was created in the aftermath of World War Two to help refugees fleeing war, persecution and violence, follow a disagreement over the appointment of the deputy high commissioner, five of the sources said.

They said that the agency had informed supporters that it could be placed on a US blacklist, ending funding, and that Washington could also withdraw from its governing Executive Committee.

Any end to US funding would seriously weaken the agency at a time of near-record levels of displacement around the world amid long-running conflicts like Ukraine and Sudan, diplomats and aid officials said.

"People have been alerted by UNHCR to call friends in the administration," a source at an aid group involved in the talks told Reuters, saying that many had done so. "They are at least thinking about it," the source added.

Another diplomat said UNHCR officials had asked supporters in the past week to use all available diplomatic channels with the United States to urge ongoing support.

A UN refugee agency spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. "We have no comment on this issue because we have no information on it," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

A State Department spokesperson said there have not been any changes to Washington's engagement with UNHCR. "As with many other international organisations, we work with and through UNHCR when doing so is useful to advance US foreign policy interests or save lives."

"We will continue to evaluate the United States' role in international organisations..." the spokesperson added, referring to a February 2025 Executive Order to review US participation and funding.

Since beginning his second term last year, President Donald Trump has cut funding for UN agencies and withdrawn from dozens of UN entities including the World Health Organization. Trump officials have also urged other nations to join a global campaign to roll back asylum protections.

Leadership dilemma

The dispute centres on last month's appointment of US career diplomat Tressa Rae Finerty as UNHCR's deputy high commissioner.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih chose Finerty over Simon Hankinson, a US-backed candidate and former foreign service officer who has accused the UNHCR of pursuing "a mass migration agenda."

"If they wanted reform, a return to UNHCR's original mission of helping actual refugees, and a careful inspection of budgets and spending, I was the guy," he told Reuters, calling Finerty a "business as usual" candidate.

Reuters could not reach Finerty for comment.

A former senior UNHCR official said Salih, a former Iraqi president and refugee, would have faced internal "uproar" had he backed Hankinson.

Other UN agencies like the International Labour Organization have also faced dilemmas over appointing US officials amid questions about the US commitment to global cooperation.

Andrew Veprek, Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration who has espoused anti-migration views, was involved in backing Hankinson's candidacy, two of the sources said. The US State Department declined to comment on his involvement.

Top donor

The US was the top donor to UNHCR in 2025, giving $868 million or about a quarter of the total contributions, according to the agency.

UNHCR is already facing a financial crisis after available funding fell roughly 30% in 2025 compared with 2024, Reuters reported. The agency has cut thousands of jobs and announced further cuts this year.

Diplomats and aid officials said a full US withdrawal would deepen the crisis and undermine support for the 1951 Refugee Convention, the cornerstone of the post-war refugee protection system.

"Rethinking it would be an existential threat for UNHCR," the former UNHCR official said. "It could have a massive knock-on effect."