US government plans to pay $850 million out of several billion it owes to UN

WASHINGTON — The US government has notified Congress of its plans to pay $850 million of the several billion it owes to the United Nations, the largest payment the Trump administration would make to the world body since it demanded sweeping reforms in exchange for continued support as its largest donor.

The State Department laid out its plans to transfer $725 million as part of its dues to the regular UN budget and $125 million toward UN peacekeeping operations in Haiti and the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to notifications sent to lawmakers this month and obtained by The Associated Press.

The US is behind on about $5 billion in dues related to its UN membership, with more than $2 billion owed toward the regular budget and $3 billion for peacekeeping operations, the United Nations says.

In February, the Trump administration made a single payment of $160 million shortly after UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the institution was facing “imminent financial collapse” unless its financial rules were overhauled or all 193 member nations paid their dues, a message clearly directed at the United States.