Trump's first executive orders on international affairs

Trump takes action immediately after taking office.
Photo: ABC

President Donald Trump rescinded 78 Biden-era executive actions, executive orders, and presidential memoranda as part of a slew of more than 200 executive actions on the first night of his second presidency. There were 42 executive orders and 115 personnel actions on Trump's "historic first day," White House officials said.

President Trump on Monday signed an executive order suspending any new U.S. foreign development assistance for three months, and directed a review of foreign assistance programs to ensure they line up with his America First foreign policy.

The order pausing funding follows an executive order directing the State Department to implement an “America First foreign policy,” although the specifics of that policy are not defined, ‘The Hill’ reports.

Trump is directing department and agency heads with responsibility for U.S. foreign development assistance programs to immediately pause new obligations and disbursements of development assistance funds to foreign countries; non-governmental organizations, international organizations or contractors.

The president calls for a review of these programs for “programmatic efficiency” and to determine whether they are consistent with U.S. foreign policy. The Office of Management and Budget will “enforce this pause,” the executive order states.

The executive order includes a waiver for the secretary of State to waive the rules for “specific programs.”

It also allows funding to resume earlier than 90 days if a review is conducted and the secretary of State or his designee, in consultation with director of OMB, decide to continue the program in the same or in a modified form. .

The measure encroaches on the legislative branch’s control over spending, which could create friction in Congress.

At the same time, there have been some critics in Congress of how some foreign aid is distributed.

Donald Trump. Official photo.
White House.com

Let us present the key points from some of the decrees

“America first policy directive to the Secretary of state”. Executive order

Section 1. Purpose. From this day forward, the foreign policy of the United States shall champion core American interests and always put America and American citizens first.

Sec. 2. Policy. As soon as practicable, the Secretary of State shall issue guidance bringing the Department of State’s policies, programs, personnel, and operations in line with an America First foreign policy, which puts America and its interests first…

“Reevaluating and realigning United States foreign aid”. Executive order

Section 1. Purpose. The United States foreign aid industry and bureaucracy are not aligned with American interests and in many cases antithetical to American values. They serve to destabilize world peace by promoting ideas in foreign countries that are directly inverse to harmonious and stable relations internal to and among countries.

Sec. 2. Policy. It is the policy of United States that no further United States foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States. 

Sec. 3. (a) 90-day pause in United States foreign development assistance for assessment of programmatic efficiencies and consistency with United States foreign policy. All department and agency heads with responsibility for United States foreign development assistance programs shall immediately pause new obligations and disbursements of development assistance funds to foreign countries and implementing non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and contractors pending reviews of such programs for programmatic efficiency and consistency with United States foreign policy, to be conducted within 90 days of this order. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) shall enforce this pause through its apportionment authority…

“Withdrawing the United States from the World Health Organization”. Executive order

Section 1. Purpose. The United States noticed its withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2020 due to the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that arose out of Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgently needed reforms, and its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO member states. In addition, the WHO continues to demand unfairly onerous payments from the United States, far out of proportion with other countries’ assessed payments. China, with a population of 1.4 billion, has 300 percent of the population of the United States, yet contributes nearly 90 percent less to the WHO. 

Sec. 2. Actions. (a) The United States intends to withdraw from the WHO. The Presidential Letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations signed on January 20, 2021, that retracted the United States’ July 6, 2020, notification of withdrawal is revoked.

(b) Executive Order 13987 of January 25, 2021 (Organizing and Mobilizing the United States Government to Provide a Unified and Effective Response to Combat COVID–19 and to Provide United States Leadership on Global Health and Security), is revoked…

(i) pause the future transfer of any United States Government funds, support, or resources to the WHO;

(ii) recall and reassign United States Government personnel or contractors working in any capacity with the WHO…

read more in our Telegram-channel https://t.me/The_International_Affairs