In a sweeping move that signals one of the most significant shifts in international peacekeeping in decades, the United Nations announced on October 8, 2025, that it will reduce its global peacekeeping force by 25% in the coming months. The decision, triggered by severe U.S. funding cuts and mounting financial uncertainty, will see between 13,000 and 14,000 military and police personnel repatriated from missions across some of the world’s most volatile regions, according to multiple reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, and other major outlets.
This dramatic reduction—impacting nine of the UN’s 11 active peacekeeping missions—comes as the organization faces one of its worst financial crises in decades. The United States, historically the largest single contributor to UN peacekeeping, has slashed its payments in line with President Donald Trump’s renewed "America First" vision. The consequences will ripple across countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Lebanon, Cyprus, Kosovo, the Central African Republic, Moroccan Sahara, the Golan Heights, and Abyei, jeopardizing the UN’s ability to protect civilians, support humanitarian efforts, and maintain fragile ceasefires.
“Overall, we will have to repatriate around 25% of our total peacekeeping troops and police, as well as their equipment, and a large number of civilian staff in missions will also be affected,” a senior UN official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity. The official underscored that the cuts will not only impact military operations, but also the civilian staff who provide critical support to peacekeeping missions.
The numbers behind the crisis are stark. The U.S., which is legally obliged to contribute over 26% of the UN’s peacekeeping budget, entered the current financial year on July 1 already owing $1.5 billion. Since then, Washington has accumulated another $1.3 billion in arrears, bringing its total debt to over $2.8 billion, according to a second UN official cited by Reuters. While the U.S. has informed the UN that it will soon make a $680 million payment, this is a significant reduction from the $1 billion paid at the same time last year.
In August, President Trump unilaterally canceled about $800 million in peacekeeping funds appropriated for 2024 and 2025, according to a message sent by his administration to Congress. The White House budget office has also proposed eliminating all U.S. funding for UN peacekeeping in 2026, citing what it called repeated failures in operations in Mali, Lebanon, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The impact of these decisions will be felt far beyond New York. The UN’s $5.4 billion peacekeeping budget for 2025-2026 now faces a shortfall of 16% to 17%, with unpaid contributions from various member states totaling $2 billion as of July. China, the second-largest contributor, is expected to pay its full $1.2 billion share by the end of the year, according to officials. Still, the gap left by the U.S. is proving difficult to fill.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has repeatedly defended the value of peacekeeping, arguing that with a budget “representing a tiny fraction of global military spending—around one half of one percent—UN peacekeeping remains one of the most effective and cost-effective tools to build international peace and security.” Nonetheless, Guterres has been forced to seek broader cost-saving measures as the organization marks its 80th anniversary amid unprecedented financial strain.
The decision to implement the cuts followed a high-level meeting on October 7 between Guterres and representatives from major donor countries, including Mike Waltz, the new U.S. ambassador to the UN. Waltz and other Trump administration officials have long argued that the UN’s budget and agencies are bloated and redundant. In a recent television interview, Waltz said the U.S. is focused on getting “the UN back to basics of promoting peace, enforcing peace, preventing wars.” He added pointedly, “We have to cut out all of this other nonsense.”
The U.S. has also withdrawn from several other multilateral institutions since Trump’s return to the White House in January, including UNESCO, the World Health Organization, and the UN’s top human rights body. At the UN headquarters, more than 60 offices, agencies, and operations are now facing 20% job cuts—part of Guterres’ reform effort and a direct reaction to the announced U.S. funding reductions.
The effects of the peacekeeping cuts are likely to be felt most acutely on the ground. “We know that there will be consequences in terms of monitoring ceasefires, protection of civilians, working with the humanitarians, or other peacekeeping activities,” a senior UN official told international media. Louis Charbonneau of Human Rights Watch warned, “The announcement potentially means a significant reduction in protection for things like humanitarian convoys and the civilians who rely on aid. We hope the UN will prioritize lifesaving humanitarian and human rights activities.”
Richard Gowan, a UN expert at the International Crisis Group, noted that the impact will vary by mission. “In somewhere like South Sudan, where peacekeepers offer many civilians a little protection and there was nearly a new war this year, cutting back peacekeepers sends a very bad signal,” he said.
Peacekeeping has long been a symbol of the UN’s commitment to global stability, with the iconic blue helmets deployed in some of the world’s most dangerous regions. At the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s, there were just 11,000 UN peacekeepers worldwide. By 2014, that number had ballooned to 130,000 across 16 missions. Today, about 52,000 men and women serve in 11 conflict areas in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The coming months will see that number drop precipitously, as thousands are sent home and missions are forced to operate with diminished resources.
For now, contingency plans are being activated across the affected missions, and the UN leadership is scrambling to prioritize the most critical operations. As the organization braces for an uncertain future, many diplomats and humanitarian groups are left wondering whether the world’s premier peacekeeping force can continue to fulfill its mandate in the face of mounting political and financial headwinds.
The coming year will test the UN’s ability to adapt and survive as it navigates not only budgetary shortfalls but also shifting geopolitical winds. For those on the ground, the stakes could hardly be higher.