Donald Trump suspended all foreign aid programs for 90 days.

Following the inauguration at the White House on January 20, the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed a series of executive orders that he announced in his address. Among these is an order to suspend all U.S. foreign aid programs for 90 days, reported on Tuesday, January 21, by the Associated Press.

The decision to suspend foreign aid programs stems from Trump's desire to verify whether they align with his policy goals. The text of his order states that assistance to foreign nations and bureaucracy "does not align with American interests." Furthermore, Trump believes that foreign aid "in many cases contradicts American values" and could lead to "destabilization of peace worldwide by promoting ideas abroad."

Thus, the new U.S. president declared that during the 90-day period, "no further foreign aid from the United States will be provided" until its procedures and objectives are aligned with Trump's foreign policy.

It is worth noting that Donald Trump repeatedly opposed foreign aid during his election campaign, despite it making up about 1% of the federal budget. An exception is the provision of billion-dollar military aid to Ukraine. Currently, it is unclear whether the restrictions on foreign aid will affect the provision of defense packages previously approved by the Joe Biden administration – however, AP notes that funding for many programs has already been allocated by Congress and must be spent.

Mark Rubio, who was confirmed as Secretary of State by Trump, previously stated during his confirmation hearings that the allocation of foreign aid would be directly dependent on benefits for the U.S. It should be noted that the order signed by Trump allows Mark Rubio to make decisions regarding the provision or withholding of aid, in consultation with the government.

"Every dollar we spend, every program we fund, and every policy we pursue must be justified by answering three simple questions: 'Does this make America safer? Does this make America stronger? Does this make America more prosperous?'", Rubio stated.

The latest report on foreign aid was released by the Biden administration in December, concerning the 2023 budget year. According to it, the U.S. allocated $68 billion for foreign programs – which ranged from assistance to disaster victims to pro-democracy initiatives in 2024 countries and regions worldwide.

It should be noted that as of early January 2025, approximately $3.8 billion allocated by the Biden administration for supporting Ukraine remains unspent. Earlier, the Pentagon press service stated that the unspent funds would be managed by Trump's team – they could also use them to support Ukraine, but it is currently unknown if they will decide to do so.