UN waiting to see how much US intends to pay of $4 billion it owes

The United Nations said Monday it's waiting to find out how much of the nearly $4 billion the United States owes the world organisation the Trump administration intends to pay and when the money will arrive.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last week that the world body faces "imminent financial collapse" unless its financial rules are overhauled or all 193 member nations pay their dues, a message clearly directed at the United States.

The US owes $2.196 billion to the UN's regular operating budget, including $767 million for this year, according to a UN official. The US also owes $1.8 billion for the separate budget for the UN's far-flung peacekeeping operations, and that also will rise.

The US Mission to the United Nations confirmed that US Ambassador Mike Waltz said the Trump administration planned to make a significant down payment on its arrears in a matter of weeks, with the final amount still to be determined. His comments were first reported by Reuters.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters Monday that Guterres has been in touch with Waltz "for quite some time," and the UN's controller also has been in touch with US officials.

"We're waiting to see exactly when payments will be made and in what amount," Dujarric said.

Guterres said in a letter to all member nations last week that cash for the UN's regular operating budget could run out by July, which could dramatically affect its operations.

President Donald Trump has said the United Nations has not lived up to its potential. His administration did not pay anything to the United Nations in 2025, and it has withdrawn from UN organisations, including the World Health Organization and the cultural agency UNESCO, while pulling funding from dozens of others.

UN officials have said 95 per cent of the arrears to the UN's regular budget is from the United States.

The country second on the list for not paying its mandatory regular dues is Venezuela, which owes $38 million, the UN official said. The South American nation, whose economy was struggling before the US military raid in January that deposed then-President Nicolas Maduro, has lost its right to vote in the General Assembly for being two years in arrears.

Nearly 60 countries paid their annual dues by the February 8 due date.