The UN is threatened with bankruptcy: what is the reason?

The United Nations is on the brink of a financial crisis due to significant arrears from the United States and China in paying contributions to the organization’s budget. According to journalists, the UN’s funds could run out by mid-August 2026.

This is reported by The Wall Street Journal .

According to the publication, the US owes the UN more than $4 billion, while China remains indebted for $455 million. At the same time, Beijing transferred almost $850 million in late May during a visit by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

Journalists note that the US and China provide 42% of the organization’s total budget. Due to a lack of funds, the UN leadership has already frozen renovation work, closed some offices, and laid off 3,000 secretariat staff.

China has announced its intention to fully repay the debt and has named itself one of the organization’s main financial sponsors. At the same time, the United States has said it is ready to resume funding after meeting a number of conditions, including a ban on business class flights and partial replacement of staff with machine translation systems.

According to the publication, the budget crisis has also been deepened by cuts in funding from other donors. The United Kingdom and Germany have reduced spending on humanitarian programs to combat hunger and disease, while journalists attribute the reduction in contributions from Sweden and the Netherlands to domestic political changes in these countries.

Back in October 2025, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of financial risks for the organization.

“The prospect of financial collapse is very real,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

As the publication notes, the issue of electing a new UN chief is gaining particular importance amid the financial crisis. The organization’s member states must approve Guterres’ successor by the end of 2026.

The situation is complicated by the fact that the UN charter prohibits the organization from taking out loans, and about 70% of all expenses go to employee salaries.

Due to the shortage of funds, the UN administration has accelerated the withdrawal of peacekeeping contingents from Africa, cut the budgets of peacekeeping missions, and frozen payments to countries that provide troops for peacekeeping operations, including Nepal and Bangladesh. The work shifts of translators have also been reduced.

Also follow “Pryamim” on Facebook , X , Telegram , and Instagram.