Mike Waltz, President Trump’s nominee for U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, is pledging a significant overhaul of the international body. His ambitious agenda includes a return to the UN’s founding principles of peace, a sharp focus on reducing peacekeeping costs, and a direct challenge to China’s growing influence and what he terms “rampant anti-Semitism” within the organization.
A Bold Vision for UN Reform
During a recent Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, Mike Waltz, a former U.S. congressman and Trump’s ex-national security adviser, laid out his priorities if confirmed as the U.S. permanent representative to the United Nations. This key position, vacant since January, marks a critical focus for the Trump administration.
Waltz highlighted that the United Nations, established 80 years ago, has “strayed” from its primary goal of global peace. He emphasized the need for UN reform, particularly in areas where U.S. taxpayers bear a substantial financial burden.
Challenging Waste and Bias
A core tenet of Waltz’s proposed ambassadorship is a commitment to fiscal responsibility. He noted that the United States is the UN’s main funder, contributing more in dues than the other 183 countries combined. He aims to ensure a “strong voice” for the U.S. in international standard-setting bodies and plans to pressure the Security Council to trim the “duration and cost of peacekeeping missions,” which currently rely on the U.S. for a quarter of their funding.
Beyond financial concerns, Waltz is set to directly challenge China’s influence within the UN, asserting that Beijing’s communist rulers advance their interests regardless of the organization’s “professed values.”
Furthermore, he vowed to confront “rampant anti-Semitism” at the United Nations, citing a stark imbalance in resolutions passed against Israel compared to all other nations combined between 2015 and 2023.
Pushing for Transparency and Efficiency
Mike Waltz expressed concern over the UN’s sprawling structure, noting it has “grown to over 80 agencies with overlapping missions and wasted resources.” If confirmed, he plans to advocate for greater transparency, aligning with the Secretary-General’s 80th-anniversary reform plan, which suggests a 20 percent staff reduction. Despite these potential cuts, Waltz reiterated that the U.S. would remain “the most generous nation in the world by far.”
Mixed Reactions from Capitol Hill
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch, a Republican, echoed Waltz’s sentiments, agreeing that the United Nations is in “urgent” need of reform. Risch praised Waltz’s “pragmatism and patriotism,” emphasizing the need to counter “rot at the UN,” including rising anti-Semitism, anti-American sentiment, and the growing influence of China and Russia.
However, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat and ranking member of the committee, raised concerns about proposed U.S. funding cuts. She warned that such reductions “have the potential to eliminate the entire U.N. peacekeeping budget,” potentially increasing the likelihood of deploying American troops to conflict zones and making China the largest contributor to UN peacekeeping and funding. Shaheen urged Waltz to “take this seriously,” cautioning that U.S. disengagement could lead to international institutions becoming “increasingly dependent on China.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian responded to Waltz’s stance on Chinese influence, urging the U.S. to “view China and U.S.-China relations objectively and rationally.”
